Cure
by MissBayley
Summary: They told me I was a living cure for the family who could never be cured. In the beginning, I didn't belong, an abnormality that technically didn't exist. YukiXOcXAkito. Complete.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: ****I do not own Fruits Basket.**

**Warning:**** If you do not like Fan Fictions that are based around an OC and her romantic interest, please leave now or forever hold your peace.**

**Chapter 1**

_They told me I was a living cure for the family who could never be cured. In the beginning, I didn't belong, an abnormality that technically didn't exist._

"Ahh!" Rachel squealed, the blinding lightning and crashing sound filling her eyes and ears. She clamped her hands over her ears and closed her eyes tightly, even with her eyes closed, her eyes still burned from the intensity of the light that once surrounded her. Slowly, she opened one glassy green eye, it adjusting to the darkness of the room. She then opened the other and unclamped her ears, listening to the rain thrashing down on her roof. _'This is sure one heck of a storm.'_ She looked down at her computer that was on her lap at the time, and saw the screen flickering slightly and the symbol of battery flashing onto the screen. Smiling at the luck of her computer having battery she waited for her computer to stop flickering before reaching to her mouse and clicking the play button on her video. She felt a sudden jolt of electricity flash through her body and her vision warp and twist in front of her, before she knew it she was sitting on a dirt path and surrounded by woods.

She scrambled to her bare feet, cursing at the rocks on the ground that pressed into the souls. She held herself in her arms and took in the surroundings better, _'There's nothing but trees,'_ Rachel spun around on the spot when she heard some voices and footsteps coming towards her. She felt fear pierce her heart and mind, she searched the trees for a bush to hide in or behind; but couldn't find one big enough. The trees were thin and lanky, she was too big to hide behind them, so after a quick decision to either stay or go, she hesitantly ran off in the opposite direction of the voices.

* * *

"Do you see that?" Yuki murmured, looking at the house they were a few metres from.

"What is it Yuki? Scared of the dark?" Kyo mused, a smirk on his face.

Yuki glared back at Kyo before simply pointing towards the figure which was attempting to climb up the side of the wall of the house, but seemed to keep slipping down. They walked a bit closer to see the red-headed girl in some sort of baggy black shirt and shorts groaning in frustration and then finally lift herself up onto the roof. Kyo, Yuki and Tohru all watched the girl as she balanced in the roof and finally look down over to them; she had a look of shock on her face and began once more to wobble on the roof.

Tohru began to freak out and flail her arms around; "Oh my goodness, that's really dangerous! What happens if he falls! We have to get him down! Oh no, Oh no, Oh no…" She began to pace around on the ground and mumble words of worry. She stopped for a moment before shouting at the frozen girl on the roof, "Please come down before you hurt yourself!"

Shigure came out of the house with his hands in his sleeves; "What's wrong Tohru? Kyo stuck on the roof again?"

"Shut up!"

The girl on the roof snapped out of her shock and began to wobble once more on the roof; she slipped and slid down to the ground, landing in front of the three people with a thud. She felt tears began to swell up in her eyes and drip down her cheeks. _'Ow, Ow, Ow, Ow, Ow! That hurt!' _The tears, as quickly as they came, disappeared. The red head lifted her head to see the three people she landed in front of.

Tohru ran over to the girl quickly, hovering over her for a moment before kneeling down close to her and looking her over for any injury; "Oh my gosh! Are you okay? Your not hurt are you?"

Rachel looked up at the girl with wide milky green eyes; "W-Who are you?"

Tohru freaked out once again, "Oh I'm so sorry! I'm Tohru Honda!" - She jolted into a bow. - "It's a pleasure to meet you!" She looked back up to Rachel, who was blinking uncontrollably.

Rachel closed her eyes and held her head; "I must have hit my head or something." She mumbled to herself and looked back up to the others; _'They all look so real…'_

Shigure kneeled down next to Rachel and Tohru; "My, my, my; It seems we've found another lost soul in the midst of our woods." He picked up her hand, turned it over and looked at it carefully, "You're hurt;" - He turned to Yuki. - "Fetch us a bandage will you Yuki? He has a cut on his hand."

Rachel watched Shigure for a moment before looking down at her hand; it had a small cut across the inside, blood oozing out and onto the ground. "B-Blood… I hate… Blood…" She felt herself fall backwards for a moment and everything got cold. She started to giggle as Tohru quickly caught her, "Blood makes me dizzy… Dizzy…"

Tohru gasped and held onto Rachel; "W-we have to get him inside! If we stay out here he might get a cold and-"

Shigure stopped Tohru; "It's okay Tohru, let's get him inside."

Tohru helped Rachel onto her feet, and put Rachel's arm around her shoulders and led her into the house with the guide of Shigure. "Stay awake…" She said warily, and sat her down at the table. She gasped in shock as Rachel's head banged onto the table. "Oh no!" She shrieked.

Rachel groaned and picked up her head from the table; "Where am I again?"

Yuki finally came back in time to hear the question, "You're in our house, I'm Yuki Sohma." He kneeled down next to Rachel, and gave Tohru the bandage. "May I ask as to why you were on the roof?"

Rachel laughed nervously as she felt Tohru clean her cut carefully, "Uh, it was sort of a reaction. I didn't mean to look like a thief or anything…" She mumbled and looked down at her now bandaged cut.

"What's your name?" Yuki asked her.

"Rachel… Bayley…" She said hesitantly, "I don't know how I got here…" She frowned mumbling her response to herself again, "I don't know how I got here…"

Kyo looked at Rachel weirdly, "Rachel? Isn't that some kind of American name or somethin'?"

Rachel nodded, "But… I come from Australia… Not America… Where am I now? What country is this?"

"Japan you idiot, where else do people speak Japanese?" Kyo said rather loudly, with his arms behind his head.

Yuki sighed, "Don't worry about him; he's got a bit of a temper. His name is Kyo Sohma, my cousin." He received a glare and a curse from Kyo.

Rachel smiled lightly and looked over at Kyo, "Oh I see…"

Tohru smiled with Rachel, "So Rachel, are you on an exchange program? There must be some reason you're in Japan."

Rachel's smile disappeared, "No, I don't know how I'm here…"

Tohru's smile disappeared also, "Oh. You don't know..?" Rachel shook her head in response. Tohru looked over at Shigure who was rubbing his chin in thought.

"So you have nowhere to go, eh?" Shigure's smile brightened, "Well it seems we'll just have to adopt you until you find your way home." He chirped happily. He stood Rachel up and started to lead her to the staircase, "Here, let me lead you to our room," - He paused for a moment. - "I mean your room." He soon was knocked down to the ground by two fists.

"You damn pervert! Why can't you act like an adult for once in your bloody life!" Kyo shouted down at the beaten down Shigure on the floor.

Yuki sighed, "And be reasonable, we don't have an extra room in this house. And all the rooms are too small to hold another long-term guest."

Shigure sat himself up from the floor and laughed slightly, "Well then Yuki, are you offering your room to this young man?"

"Young man?" Rachel questioned, a sweat drop fell down the back of her head.

Shigure smiled down at Rachel, "Yes, you look like a handsome young fellow." He winked down at Rachel. "You know, I find both Males and Females attractive."

"Dammit Shigure! You're disgusting!"

"Really Shigure, at least try to behave in front of our guest."

Rachel sighed and lowered her head, "You know it's okay. I'm not helpless; I can find somewhere else to stay… Or maybe find out how I got here in the first place." She lifted her head up to look at everyone that was staring at her.

Tohru ran up to her instantly; "No, no, no! It's okay! I can make some space in my room. Please, it's okay." Rachel opened her mouth to say something but Tohru cut her off. "It's okay… Really. I don't mind." She smiled a genuine bright smile. Tohru held her hand and began to lead her upstairs, "I'll show you to our room."

Yuki stopped her, "Wait, maybe it would be more appropriate if he stayed in one of our-" - He looked over at Kyo who glared at Yuki. - "My room…"

"But-" Rachel was cut off with a blush as Yuki placed a hand on her back and continued her up the stairs. Yuki showed her his room, which was quite neat and tidy, and went to the closet.

"Let's get you some clothes…" Yuki murmured as he pulled out some clothes out of his closet and handed them to Rachel. He stared at her for a moment with a frown on his face, "I hope you're not offended by this but, you look very much like a girl."

Rachel blushed lightly and frowned as well, "That's because I-"

"Yuki! I need your help for a moment, can you please come here?" Shigure's voice came from downstairs, Yuki sighed and nodded towards Rachel before leaving the room.

Rachel stood there for a moment before completing her sentence to no one; "am a girl…"

* * *

Yuki entered the room to see Shigure, Kyo and Tohru sitting around the table. "What is it?" He asked.

Shigure rubbed his chin, "Well, it is the matter of the secret that worries me here…"

Kyo scoffed, "What we worried about? It's a guy, and it isn't like he's gonna go hugging us anyway." Shigure turned towards Kyo smiling. "What?"

"Nothing. But what if Tohru accidently fell on us, causing us to transform?" Shigure pointed out, Kyo opened his mouth for a moment, but closed it with a frown. "Exactly, so we should all be at least on our guard a little bit, alright? Now, since we have a new guest in our house. Yuki, did you offer him some clothes? The ones he had on must have been dirty."

Yuki nodded, "He's getting changed right now." He thought for a moment, "Perhaps we should enrol him in Kabira high?" Yuki suggested, "He seems to speak Japanese fluently… And I don't trust Shigure to look after him while Miss Honda, that stupid cat and I am gone." He glared at Shigure from the corner of his eye.

Shigure cried for a moment, "Oh Yuki, you don't trust me anymore, it breaks my heart."

"I never trusted you to begin with."

Rachel stepped into the room and felt all eyes go on her; she tugged at the clothes on her. "It's a bit big…" She mumbled, looking down.

Tohru smiled widely, "Wow Rachel! You look as cute as a girl in Yuki's clothes!" Rachel blushed lightly at her comment, mumbling thanks along the way. Tohru got up and led Rachel down to the table, "Rachel; Shigure, Yuki, Kyo and I have been talking… And well…"

"We think it might be best if you enrolled in our school, for the time being." Yuki finished her sentence, sitting down next to Rachel, causing her to slide closer to Tohru at how close he was.

"Um… Right. You all are so welcoming… Thank you…" Rachel said kind of shocked on how fast they welcomed her into the family, she looked over at Kyo who didn't seem to care. "But, I have no money… And I can't afford the uniform."

"That's okay, you can borrow one of Kyo's uniforms." Shigure said, waving it off.

"Hey! Why does he have to borrow one of mine! Why not make him borrow one of that damn rat's!" Kyo said, slamming his fist down on the table.

Shigure turned to Kyo, "Don't worry Kyo; he can just wear the one we got that was too small. And why not? You never wear your tie either so he can have that also." Kyo simply huffed and frowned, looking away. "Anyway, I'll take you to the school tomorrow and we'll get you enrolled." Shigure heard Kyo's stomach rumble for a moment before smiling a knowing smile, "And now that that's taken care of. Tohru, what are you making for dinner this evening?"

Tohru began to freak out, "Dinner! Oh-my-gosh! I-completely-forgot-about-dinner! Hold-on-I'll-go-get-it-started, sorry-for-forgetting-I'll-" Tohru ran into the kitchen, and her mumbles soon disappeared through the walls.

Rachel sighed and looked down at the clothes she was wearing, thinking over everything that's happened. _'This is so weird… I don't understand what the hell is going on but…'_ - She looked up at everyone in the room, Shigure had put on his glasses and was now reading a book, Kyo was walking in the direction of the outside and Yuki looked back at her, seeming to analyse her in some way. She didn't mind, however it didn't stop the blush reaching her cheeks again, which Yuki seemed to notice because of his startled expression. Rachel looked back down to her lap. _'I wonder how long it's going to last…'_

_

* * *

_

**End of Chapter 1**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Rachel stood at the entrance of the school, she had insisted that she enter the school alone, because she hadn't wanted anyone to bother Tohru and the boys as to whom she was. She promised Tohru that she would hang out with her at lunch, but for the moment she wanted to get to know the school on her own, so she might be able to make friends by herself without the help of the others. Sighing, Rachel entered the school.

She got various looks from everyone, some confused, some surprised and some had light blushes on their faces. After she made it to her locker, which was right next to Tohru's, she was confronted by a few girls.

"Um, hello, you look new here…" The first girl began, she seemed very shy and the other around her looked exactly the same. "Do you need help finding your class? I mean, that's if you need it…" She looked down and blushed.

Rachel smiled at her, "Sure, I would really appreciate that. Thank you. Oh, my name is Rachel Bayley, but you can just call me Bayley. I'm from Australia." She received surprised looks and blushes from the girls. Rachel sighed inwardly, _'This always happens… Why can't they be guys instead of girls for once?'_

"Oh, I'm Ri, this is Akaya and Maroke. It's so nice to meet you!" The girl piped up, the blush on her face darkening as Rachel smiled politely again. The girls lead Rachel up to her classroom and showed her the various places the school had. "And this is 1D, your classroom right?"

Rachel nodded to them, and held a hand on the door for a moment, "Thank you, I'll see you around?" Rachel received nods from the girls as watched as they scampered off. Once they were out of sight, she sighed and opened the door to her classroom.

The teacher looked over to Rachel, "Ah, you must be the new student that enrolled yesterday, am I right?" He received a nod from Rachel. "Come in, introduce yourself to the class."

Rachel quickly scanned her eyes through the crowd of students; everyone seemed to look at her with high interest, including Hana and Uo, who were sitting up the front with Kyo and Tohru, the only exception being the boy in the back corner, whom she recognised as Yuki. "Hello, I'm Rachel Bayley. But, um, you can just call me Bayley if you want, I don't mind. And if you are wondering about my name, I'm Australian so I think that would kind of explain it… Um… That's about it…" She trailed off at the end.

The teacher nodded, "Welcome to Kabira High, Mr Bayley. Please take a seat at the back next to Yuki Sohma; can you please wave so Mr Bayley knows where you are?" The teacher asked, receiving a prompt wave from Yuki.

Rachel scurried down the aisle and next to Yuki, sitting down in a huff. She placed her bag on the hook beside her desk and took out a notebook and pen, opening it to its first page.

"So Mr Bayley, how are you enjoying Kabira? Not too much for you is it?" Yuki asked politely.

Rachel turned to him and smiled lightly, "Well, it's nice. Some of the girls showed me around the school so I think I have a small idea on where everything is. But…" She looked around and saw the drools of the girls around her. "I don't think I'm used to this attention."

"Don't worry about it, the girls here overreact a bit but they are generally harmless." Yuki turned back to his book, "I'm assuming you weren't popular at your old school? With the girls at least…?"

Rachel laughed lightly, causing Yuki to look at her with slightly wide eyes. She might look like a guy, but her laugh was genuinely female. "No not really, but I guess that's because they knew I was a-"

"Mr Sohma and Mr Bayley!" The teacher called from the blackboard. "Would you like to share the joke with the class?" The remaining students turned around expectantly at Yuki and Rachel.

Rachel laughed a fake laugh, "I was just telling Yuki that Australian's don't always greet each other with '_G'day' _and say the words, _'Blimey!' _and _'Crikey!'_" She lied to the teacher.

The teacher responded with an amused smile, "Very well, but next time try to keep it at a lower volume. Although the class won't mind hearing the jokes, it interrupts the lesson." He turned back to the blackboard and continued writing up the Maths equations.

Rachel leaned over to Yuki and whispered, "I think that's our cue to shush, don't you think?"

Yuki smiled at her and nodded his head in agreement, and continued writing down notes for the class. He glanced over to Rachel, _'I get a feeling something is wrong about this situation… This boy… Feels like a girl…'_ Yuki shook out of his thoughts as he heard the bell ring loudly through the classroom. He packed away his books and stood up, seeing Rachel smile at him, waiting.

"You have to show me where you guys sit for lunch, I'm not really sure. But I see you guys hanging up at the roof for some reason." She grinned at him, receiving a nod from Yuki which made her grin turn into a small smile. Yuki walked ahead of her, his quiet voice telling her to follow, which she done with slumped shoulders, "Not very enthusiastic now are we…" She mumbled to herself.

"What was that?"

"Uh, nothing!"

* * *

They walked up to the roof, making Rachel's _'guess'_ right. She was welcomed by Tohru and her friends, Uo and Saki, who greeted Rachel warmly and with welcoming arms. Tohru introduced Rachel, "Uo, Hana, this is Rachel. He's from Australia!" She said brightly and proudly.

"Hey." Uo said simply, shuffling cards in her hands, "Know how to play Rich man, Poor man?" Before she could receive an answer, Saki interrupted her.

"You're such a pretty girl, Rachel." Saki said in her usual monotone voice. She received looks from everyone, "Is something wrong?" She looked at everyone else from the corner of her eye.

"Um, Hana…" Tohru attempted to correct her, "Well, you see… Rachel is not a girl… He's a boy." Tohru hoped Saki hadn't accidently offended Rachel by mistake, although it was odd that Saki would make the wrong assumption with her physic abilities.

"Oh." Saki turned to Rachel with a plain expression, then simply stated, "My mistake."

Rachel laughed lightly, "It's okay… I um… Get that a lot?" She said, _'I don't know if I should even bother telling them or not…'_ "It's great to meet you both." She smiled nicely at them both.

Uo laughed a hearty laugh, "My, you're just like the prince, no wonder the school is buzzing about you. And I think there's already another fan club forming. That would be bad wouldn't it Hana? Another fan club would be double the trouble."

"Yes, that certainly would not do."

"Well anyway, it's nice to meet you too. And now that everyone's here," She noticed Kyo had finally come up. "Let's get this party started. I'll be the dealer." She started handing everyone cards, and the game begun. It was over relatively quickly, after Saki countered Kyo's revolution, the bell rung through the school and caused the next game to end earlier than expected.

"Argh, the bell always goes when I'm winning." Kyo whined, throwing down the cards in anger.

"Oh shut up you." Uo growled back, "You had no chance of winning no matter how hard you try."

Kyo thrust himself into a stance and held his fist in her face, "Oh yeah? Want to bet something on that Yankee?"

Tohru worried in the background, "Uh Kyo, we have to get to class now. We don't want to be late and the teacher said that if your late again you'll have to stay after school and-"

"Yeah yeah," Kyo mumbled. "Forget I said anything. Let's go to class." He stuck his hands in his pockets and stalked off with Uo and Saki following him, Uo occasionally shouting insults at him.

Yuki turned politely to Rachel and Tohru, "Well since we are all in the same class, why not head down together?" He received a small 'yeah' from Tohru and nod from Rachel, and started to head down the stairs.

Tohru stumbled lightly on the stairs at first, and accidently dropped her lunch she had made, but she didn't eat, she wasn't too fond of seafood but she thought the others would enjoy it. It banged down the stairs and as Rachel reached for it, she slipped on the long fabric at the bottom of her pants causing her to twist in the air and join Tohru in the fall.

"Miss Honda, Mr Bayley!" Yuki gasped, reaching out to grab Tohru and pulled her close, as they both hit the ground there was a second before a cloud of purple smoke clouded their vision and a slight sound of an explosion. For a moment Rachel and Tohru sat there in wonder until the smoke faded away into the air.

Rachel felt a bump at the back of her head where she hit the floor; she quickly stood up and looked around the ground, "Yuki? Where are you?" She watched as Tohru kneeled down next to his clothes and searched them for the rat she was sure was hiding in there.

"Yuki?" Tohru called to the clothes. She felt something warm brush her fingers, so she grabbed it lightly and pulled it out. Rachel gasped in shock at the small rat in Tohru's hands; it was one thing to see it in the anime but another thing to see it with your own two eyes. Yuki was so small and, cute.

"This could be a problem." The rat said in a whispery voice, "I transformed in front of Mr Bayley."

Rachel laughed lightly, the same laugh that he heard earlier. "I have a feeling that I should have gone down with Kyo and the others… You're a rat?" She faked the confusion.

Yuki looked down, ashamed, "Usually Shigure explains all this, but I guess he's not here, so… You see my family is under a curse, when we are hugged by a member of the opposite sex, we transform into the 12 members of the zodiac and the excluded member, the cat." He mumbled spitting out the word cat with hate. He begun fiddling around and looking everywhere but Rachel's face. "And after a few seconds to minutes, it varies a bit… We transform back. However… We're um…" Yuki transformed back into a human, "Naked…" he finished as he let out the rest of his breath.

Rachel slammed her eyes shut and let out a squeal and Tohru quickly turned around, "Oh god!" Rachel squeaked, she heard Yuki move and took the chance to scamper away for a moment. "Sorry! I should have realised, I mean your clothes were on the ground and… Ah!" She couldn't finish her sentence. After she calmed down a bit, and a few seconds had passed, Yuki placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up to him; she noticed his slightly pink cheeks. Rachel got up from the ground and dusted off her pants.

Tohru pointed at Rachel, "Um… Bayley? Your shirt… It um…" Her cheeks had a sprinkle of pink on them. Yuki and Rachel followed the direction of her finger, to reveal that the first few buttons of Rachel's shirt was undone from the fall, exposing her training bra underneath.

"Ahh!" Rachel squealed once again, and quickly buttoned up her shirt.

"So, you're a girl?" Yuki questioned, not sure what to believe.

"You figure?" Rachel asked sarcastically.

"Well- No. It's just- Well- Everyone else. They thought- You know, you were a-" – He swallowed. – "A boy." He stammered out, he wasn't used to accidently mistaking a girl for a boy. Although he knew how it felt, he was often mistaken for a girl. But now that he knew she was a girl, he glanced over her for a little bit. She was a bit short for a normal boy her age, but then again, so was Momiji. And her hair was so, for lack of better words, perfect. To him. It was a beautiful mixture of ginger and blonde, giving her a very unique look. Which contrasted brilliantly with her glassy green eyes, when she looked at him, it looked as if she was thinking of something else. Like her mind wasn't completely in it, like she was daydreaming all the time. She seemed quite cute now that he knew she was a girl.

Rachel laughed, "Well, that's okay I guess. I guess now you know my secret now, so we're even, right? And besides, I'm always mistaken for a boy." She brushed her fringe out of her eyes and looked up at Yuki, "I sometimes wish that people would just know that I'm a girl… Although…" Rachel thought back to Saki; _'You're such a pretty girl, Rachel.' _"I guess that Hana knew I was a girl. That's a comforting thought." She smiled contently and looked down at the ground.

Tohru held a fist to her chest, "Actually I had a feeling there was something different about you! I just couldn't put my finger on it!" She trailed off when she saw Rachel's comforting smile.

Rachel laughed lightly, "Well, my secret isn't as bad as Yuki's, and the other's I assume. So don't worry about it."

Yuki nodded, "So do I call you Miss Bayley now?"

"I'm enrolled as a male student; I don't think that would be a good thing."

"Oh."

"You can just call me Bayley, if it confuses you too much."

"Okay, Bayley."

"Better?"

"Much."

"Good…"

"Well here's our class…"

"Yeah, true that."

"So…?"

"Yeah let's go in."

"Okay."

Before Rachel opened the door to the classroom she paused, "Oh, Tohru? Yuki?" She saw them look at her with a questioning stare. She felt a bit of blood rush to her cheeks, "Thanks, even if it's just you two. I'm glad someone knows I'm a girl." She smiled sweetly at them and opened the door, not catching the blush that spread across Yuki's face.

* * *

**End of Chapter 2**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**

* * *

**

As the day came to an end, the Sohma household gathered around the table for the delicious dinner Tohru and once again made up for them; Miso soup with rice and some cooked salmon in a seasoned sauce. Tohru fidgeted for a moment as everyone tried her cooking; "So…" She bit her lip in worry, "Is it good? Not too much is it?"

"It's good Miss Honda." Yuki said in approval.

"Wonderful!" Shigure cooed, "Absolutely wonderful my beautiful flower!" He begun to cry over his chop sticks, "Ah, Tohru's home cooking! I would live off this for the rest of my life!" He took more bites from the salmon with glee.

Tohru looked over at Rachel, who seemed to be picking at the salmon. "Bayley, do you like it?" She asked timidly.

Rachel looked up from the salmon, and smiled nervously, "I've, never had salmon before…" Her smile faltered slightly, "I don't know what to do, honestly." She picked up a slice clumsily with her chopsticks and went to take a bite, before it slipped and fell into her Miso soup. And began digging around for the slice, retrieving half of it from the bottom. She laughed nervously.

Tohru giggled along with Rachel, "Well, what type of things did you use to eat? When you were in Australia?" She watched Rachel pull a face as she took a bite from the salmon, and turning slightly green. "Oh my goodness! Are you okay Rachel?" She watched Rachel grab her stomach and shut her eyes tightly. Tohru ran over and helped Rachel up the stairs and outside the bathroom.

Rachel waved her off, "It's okay, I was just expecting something different…" She hiccupped, looking over at Tohru with her hand over her mouth. "Well, at least I got 'trying salmon' off my bucket list." She removed her hand and laughed, Tohru joining her. Rachel looked down when they stopped laughing, deep in thought. "Tohru…"

Tohru's smile turned into worry, "Bayley, are you okay?" She looked down to get a glimpse of her face. "You feel ill again?" She watched Rachel shake her head.

"No it's not that…" She murmured. "I just think, maybe, we should tell the others, you know, the fact I'm a girl?"

Tohru froze up, "Oh right! I completely forgot!" Her eyes softened, "Yeah, maybe we should go tell them, it would be for the best for them to know, right?" Rachel nodded in agreement. The two headed downstairs and back into the room. Tohru instantly became nervous and fidgeted with her skirt.

"What's wrong dear Tohru?" Shigure asked innocently, receiving glares from the other two boys at the table.

Tohru stuttered for a moment, she looked at Rachel who shrugged and gave her an approving smile. "Rachel, He- She- He- Knows! About- About the…" She stammered and pointed at Yuki, "And Yuki knows that he- she's and curse and-" She collapsed slightly to the ground with a moan, her face slightly red and swirling eyes. Kyo and Yuki both moved towards her with their hands up as if to attempt to catch her if she fell completely.

Shigure shook his head, "Tohru, Tohru, Tohru. Whatever it is I'm sure it's fine. Nothing to worry about, we can handle it." He got sceptical looks from everyone but Tohru. "So Tohru, what exactly did the little boy find out?"

Tohru quickly turned serious. "She found out the secret."

"She?"

"Yes."

"So Rachel's a girl?" Shigure asked, not too bothered, while Kyo little fell down to the ground with a huge thud. Kyo quickly got up and pointed at Shigure, "She just found out the secret and your more worried about if she's a girl or boy?"

Shigure laughed at Kyo, "Well, at least I know now not to walk in on her in the bathroom." He placed a hand behind his head and laughed loudly. Soon after he crashed to the ground.

"You-"

"-Sick-"

"-Pervert!"

Rachel walked back into the room, "Um, Tohru?" Tohru turned around to Rachel in interest. "Not that Yuki's clothes aren't comfortable and all but…" The shirt she was wearing was quite low, and as a 'boy' it wouldn't be too bad, but because they knew she was a girl…

Tohru nodded a determined look on her face. "Oh it's okay Rachel! I'll get you some of my clothes! I have some small ones that don't fit me, you can have them!" She got up and ran quickly upstairs and then back down with a bag. "Here you go Rachel!" She smiled brightly. Rachel looked at the bag with eyes wide, thinking how fast she was able to get all those clothes. Tohru handed over the clothes, nudging her in the direction of the stairs.

Rachel tripped over the first stair, just barely catching herself. "Um, thanks?" She said, more of a question than an actual thank you. She trudged up the stairs and to her room; her and Yuki's. _'I wonder if I'll change rooms...'_ She thought to herself, closing the door behind her. She opened the bag, sneezing at the little bit of dust that came out. Picking out a simple white shirt and green skirt that looked very old, she slipped into them. She found they were very comfortable, they must have been worn in. She trudged down the stairs, thumping her way down until she reached the living room, "Sorry about all this." She kneeled down and hung her head low.

Shigure smiled brightly, "Ah, what a cute little girl we have here, I can tell you're a girl just by looking at you now!" He shrunk down when he saw Yuki and Kyo's deadly glares. "Now, Rachel. Since you know of the curse, I believe there are some things you should know…" He suddenly was serious, "First off, yes. Yuki and I are all apart of the Zodiac, that's what we call the curse, Kyo transforms as well, however isn't apart of the group. He's what we call 'excluded'." – Kyo had veins popping everywhere on his head. – "On another note, it would be appreciated if you didn't tell anyone of the curse. Saves us the trouble of erasing the memories of others, and although you and Tohru are an exception by Akito, he may change at any time so…" His bright smile returned, "Until then, please stay as long as you like." He received a hesitant nod from Rachel. "Well…" – he got up and stretched. – "I'm going to sleep. It's been a long day…" He let go of the rest of his breath and headed to his room.

The rest of them sat in awkward silence, Tohru piped up; "So, you know what Yuki's Zodiac animal is. Can you guess Shigure's, or Kyo's?"

"Dog and cat." Rachel stated simply, she smiled at them despite their shocked glances. _'As long as I'm here I may as well act somewhat physic.'_ She inwardly laughed evilly to herself. "But personally, my favourite Zodiac would have to be the rat, if I had to pick. Although I was born a dog, and I'm allergic to cats." She moved towards Yuki, "So I guess we can be friends, right?" She smiled brightly at him.

Yuki leaned back a bit, "Of course Bayley." He said, slightly pink at the closeness, if she was a 'boy' still, he wouldn't feel bothered, but now he's just more aware to the fact that she's a girl now.

Rachel sat back into her original position and clapped happily, "You're so awesome! I love you!" She then grinned at him, "In a purely friendly way, of course." She turned to Kyo, "Kyo, you're the cat right?" – She received a grunt of annoyance from Kyo. – "That's so cool! And Tohru, you seem like the type to love the cat, from the story right?"

Tohru and Kyo blushed madly, "Well, I've always liked the cat of the Zodiac! Always." She looked down to her lap, "So… R-Rachel… What are you going to do with the school? I mean, you're known as a male student there…" She mumbled slightly.

Rachel pondered the thought, "Honestly, I was more worried about the fact I'm sharing a room with a boy at the moment…" She looked over at Yuki. "Not that I mind, it just, might give off the wrong impression. That's all." Yuki nodded in agreement.

"If you don't mind then why don't you just stay there? If you don't care and all." Kyo said, leaning back into his arms. "I mean if people find out they think you're a boy so they won't care. It's not a problem."

Rachel shrugged, "Guess you do have a point." She fell back onto the ground, "I can't be bothered changing anyway," – She turned her head to Yuki. – "Looks we're roomies for good huh?" She winked at him and laughed at the shocked face he pulled after the wink. She smiled and closed her eyes, feeling her mind drift off to sleep slightly. She sighed slightly at how comfortable she felt, despite the fact she was on the hard ground.

* * *

"Rachel's quite the character, isn't… He." Tohru said, almost saying she was a girl by mistake. They watched as Rachel scribbled various drawings on her new school shoe, taking the pale aqua slipper to a beautiful array of different pictures, such as waves, food and some pencils and erasers. Uo nodded with Tohru as they sat there in wonder.

"It is hard to believe he is a boy." Saki said blankly, nibbling on the chips she had packed for lunch, and reaching for another rice ball Tohru had made for everyone.

"And he seems to be clinging to the prince as well," - Uo pointed out, as Rachel and Yuki sat together. - "If I didn't know he was a boy, I would think that they would be a couple." They watched as Rachel pointed out something on her shoe and sneaked something small from Yuki's obento.

"Um, excuse me…"

The whole group turned towards the three girls who timidly stood at the door to the roof. Rachel piped up, _'It's those girls from before.'_ Rachel stood up, smiling. "Hey guys!" She waved at them, and then watched their shy expression; "Is something wrong?" She walked over to them, noticing something new and shiny on their uniform.

"No, nothing… Prince Bayley. We were, just wondering if you could help us with our… English homework." Maroke said, her long black hair pulled back with a headband and covering the shiny object on her uniform. She looked at Rachel, and then shyly lowered her head.

"Prince Bayley?" Rachel asked in shock, and then laughed slightly. "Oh you after Yuki too?" She watched as their all nod their heads thoroughly, and then Rachel saw it. The badge on their uniform, it was just like the Prince Yuki Fan Club's badge, but… The 'Y' that used to be there, was halved. And the other half of the badge was…

A 'B'.

Rachel's eyes widened in surprise, "Um…" She watched them look up at her with pleading eyes, "Okay. I'll help you." She gave in, still surprised about the members of the new-found club. She turned to the others with a confused expression, "Um Yuki do you want to help these girls with English homework with me?" She called to Yuki, who was watching the conversation the whole time, and received a nod from him. She turned back to the girls, who smiled shyly at her, she grinned at them, "Smart thinking, asking an Australian to help with English homework." She laughed lightly, causing the girls to laugh too.

The girls smiled brightly and happily up at Rachel, "Thank you so much!" Ri stated excitingly. Akaya nodded soon after, and led Rachel and Yuki to a school room, to help them with their 'homework'.

As they sat down in some of the chairs, Rachel comfortably drew a chair closer to the three girls, while Yuki kept a slight distance. "So," Rachel started, "What are you having trouble with?" She asked, while looking down at the sheet of paper. _'Hm, there's actual writing on this paper, and it looks like the type of things I learnt in grade 2. By the looks of it, they are studying how to speak about weekends…' _

Akaya pointed to a few questions; "We're having trouble with these questions, there are some things in there that we haven't learnt yet because of the Prince Bay-" Ri covered her mouth quickly, "Because of other commitments!" She said quickly, glaring at her friend.

Rachel nodded, "Well," She laughed, "What can you pick up from the exercise anyway?"

The girls and Rachel continued on the homework for English, while Yuki simply sat there, wondering about how strange he felt to the newly-found girl. _'It's a girl, but everyone at school, especially the girls, think she's a boy.' _He watched her slightly closely. _'She seems fine with it however, is it because she used to be mistaken for a boy at her old school?' _He sighed lightly, catching the attention of the girls in front of him.

Rachel looked at him annoyingly, "Boring you are we?" She said, then in a slightly deeper voice she commented, "Well, you might have fun like us if you helped. Or are you secretly horrible at English?" The annoyed face smiled evilly at him, the girls next to her looked at her with shocked looks, their thoughts along the line of; _"Why is he talking like that to Prince Yuki?"_ They looked at Yuki for his reaction.

Yuki frowned, "I can speak English perfectly fine." He stated, "It just seems like you are doing a good job, I don't think I'm needed."

Rachel's evil grin turned shocked, "You haven't been paying attention at all!" She waved her hand over the work page; "I'm not teaching them anything, I've just given them the answers." She sighed; "Because I suck at teaching of course."

The girls turned towards Rachel with big eyes and sympathetic expressions; "No not at all, Prince Bayley!" Maroke said, shaking her head. "You're doing a great job! Thank you so much!" Her friends nodded in agreement.

"To take your time to even come here and help us," Ri began, "We are eternally in your debt." They all bowed towards Rachel.

Rachel laughed, holding her hands in front of her; "I wouldn't say eternally… It's fine." They all heard the bell ring; "Ah…" Rachel huffed, "Sorry we couldn't help you anymore, but Yuki and I have to head to class." She stood at her seat and placed it back in its original spot.

Yuki also stood and bowed towards the girls; "Sorry I couldn't help you as much as Bayley." He placed his chair back too. With Rachel, they began heading out of the classroom, Rachel waved enthusiastically at the girls; "See ya!" She called.

The girls sat back in their seats, sighing happily.

"I can't believe how lucky we are; Prince Bayley and Prince Yuki helped us with our English homework." Akaya said dreamily, her head on her hands.

Ri giggled lightly, "They are both so handsome, but I think I prefer Prince Bayley to Prince Yuki," She sat up lightly to look at her friends, "He seems to be more comfortable around girls and well, nicer, if I may say so myself." She watched her friends gasp.

"Prince Yuki will always be my number one," Maroke interjected, "Prince Bayley looks too young, but still, he is undeniably cute." Maroke smiled, brushing back her long black hair.

"Wouldn't he be wonderful if Prince Yuki and Prince Bayley got together?" Akaya asked; excited by the thought. She received mad blushes from her friends.

"Prince Bayley and Prince Yuki? Together?" Maroke questioned; shocked.

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**End of Chapter 3**

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**A/N: While I'm not fussed over getting reviews, nor do I like having Author Notes, but one or two reviews is a helpful reminder that the story is actually being read. It also helps to see if people like it, and that my effort isn't being wasted. Constructive critism is helpful too, dispite the fact the whole story is completely written. (So you don't have to worry about it stopping suddenly.)**

**So please, a review would remind me to update, and make me a little happier. :) **

**Thanks. Cookies for you. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

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"Akito."

A man who lay across the porch lazily rolled onto his side, looking up at his visitor with tired eyes. "Shigure, such a wonderful surprise." He stated, his kimono slipped off his shoulders. He sat up straight as he felt Shigure sit next to him, looking out to the dew covered garden. "What brings you here?" He asked politely.

Shigure gazed out for a moment, pausing for a moment before answering. "Your aware of the new addition to the household, I'm sure." He stated formally. "However; it seems we have gotten a little information on them wrong." He breathed out, seeing his breath in the cold morning air. It was always cold around Akito's chambers for an unknown reason.

Akito felt his anger build up a little and looked over at Shigure, who refused to keep eye contact with him. Letting out a frustrated sigh he looked away and asked, "What seems to be the problem with our guest?"

"It seems that, he is actually a female." Shigure said, he glanced over at Akito who he noticed was clenching his jaw and fists. He felt himself go slightly ridged and braced himself for an outburst.

"Leave."

Shigure panicked slightly, "Akito, wait, shouldn't we discuss whether the gir-"

Akito quickly stood in his place, towering over Shigure with a hard angry glare, he clenched his fists so much that blood began to drip out and his knuckles began turning white, he flew a slap at Shigure, keeping his hand in the air he pointed out, "Leave! Now!" He watched as Shigure touched the place Akito slapped him with two fingers, and quickly scampered to his feet and bowed.

"Very well, Akito." Shigure murmured; his tone still formal. He headed out of the chambers before he heard Akito's voice again, this time it was softer and more controlled.

"I'm going to make her life hell." Shigure heard a vase break as he closed the door.

* * *

"We're home!" Tohru called out as she stepped into the traditional house, she slipped off her shoes and headed to Shigure's office. She slid the door open, "Shigure, I'll-" she stopped as she noticed the room was empty except a small note. "Oh you're not here…" She said. She picked up the note and read over it a little.

"Good riddance." Kyo mumbled as he made his way up the stairs and into his room. Slamming the door behind him, causing Tohru to flinch.

"I wonder what's wrong with Kyo…" Tohru mumbled.

"It's probably nothing Miss Honda." Yuki reassured her, heading up the stairs also. "I'm sure he's just upset over having to clean the classroom once again." He received a slight nod from Tohru, and went out of sight.

Rachel walked into the house last, hopping on one foot because the other one fell off her feet. She placed down her shoes and sighed in relief, "I need to get a job…" She mumbled, and looked up at Tohru. "'Sup Tohru." She grinned widely and held up her hand in a peace sign. She just saw her a second ago, but she loved greeting everyone whenever she saw them.

Tohru stumbled for a moment, "Uh, nothing?" She questioned, wondering if that was the right response. She watched Rachel smile and begin to walk off until she remembered something, "Oh Rachel!" Tohru blurted out.

Rachel turned towards Tohru, "Hm?" She smiled back at Tohru.

"We are having some visitors tonight and tomorrow," She pointed to the note, which stated that Shigure would be back later with Hatori and Ayame. "So, don't be startled." Tohru smiled, "You'll meet Hatori and Ayame then."

Rachel nodded dumbly, "Ah. Alright." She blinked as they stood there, looking at each other for a moment, the situation turning awkward.

"Um…"

"Um… Need help with dinner tonight?" Rachel asked politely, "If there are others I'm sure an extra hand will help." _'Although I should mention I would probably burn everything…'_ She thought to herself.

Tohru smiled widely, "Yes, thank you! It would be lots of help. Thank you!" She clasped her hands in front of her, seeming to doze off into another world. Rachel watched her carefully for a moment, trying to figure out what she was doing, she noted that there were slight sparkles surrounding her head, and concluded that she was probably having an inner monologue.

"Right…" Rachel mumbled and headed up the stairs. "I'll just get changed into something comfy…" She mumbled to no one in particular as she jumped up the stairs. She turned to the room she and Yuki shared; knocked lightly and waited for a moment before heading in. Closing it behind her; she set her bag down next to the small mattress on the floor next to the wall on the other side of the room. She looked through the bag of clothes Tohru owned, and concluded that it was too cold for a skirt again, so she picked out a long green shirt and black tights.

She began to hum a slight tune to herself as she changed into the clothes she had set out on the bed, just as she was about to put on the green shirt she heard the click of the door open. Turning around to see what was going on, she saw Yuki in the doorway, a huge blush on his cheeks as he stared at her half-naked form. Rachel stared at him for a moment, blinking slightly, and watched him close the door. Quickly she slipped on the shirt and tights and opened the door to greet him.

"Sorry…" She said simply she looked down to see Yuki sitting against the wall him his head resting on his hand.

Yuki looked up at her, a blush still present on his cheeks, "I should be the sorry one, Bayley. I forgot to knock."

Rachel shrugged, "I don't mind, it was just my underwear. And besides, I've seen you without underwear on. So I guess we're even." The response was Yuki's blush deepening in colour. She looked at him weirdly, "It's no big deal Yuki. I mean it's the same as if you saw me in a Bikini."

Yuki nodded and stood up from his position on the floor, and dusted off his pants. He looked down at her for a moment, a sprinkle of pink still on his cheeks. "I shouldn't say this, but if there was any part of me that thought you still seemed like a boy, it definitely," he coughed into his hand a little, "doesn't think that way anymore." He watched Rachel look up at him with a mad blush, and he quickly scrambled into his room, mumbling "I'm sorry I need to get changed."

He closed the door behind him and went to change, his head was running through the last few minutes over and over, and he could feel his heart speed up a little and his blush go a little deeper once again when he lingered over certain details.

"Yuuki!" A familiar voice called down stairs, "Why don't you come down and give your brother a big hug!"

All heart-pounding thoughts left Yuki's head and a dark aura began to fill the room slowly. He slammed a door open, startling Rachel who was waiting outside and stormed down the stairs, followed by Rachel.

The two walked into the dining room only to be greeted by Yuki's older brother, Ayame and the Doctor, Hatori. Ayame looked up at Yuki with wide eyes and a happy smile; "Oh my brother! You have finally come down to give me a welcoming hug!" He laughed loudly while he stood up and went to go hug his brother, only to be knocked down by a fist.

"Keep away from me." Yuki said through his teeth. "What are you doing here? Get out."

Hatori looked over at Yuki, "Yuki." He saw the girl behind him, "And who is this?"

Rachel's eyes widened, and quickly bowed when she remembered Japanese customs, "I'm Rachel Bayley, Dr. Sohma..?" She said, almost as a question, she didn't know what to call him.

Hatori held out a hand, "No need for formality Miss Bayley." On the other side of the table Tohru gasped. Rachel murmured, "Just call me Rachel, Dr. Sohma, please." He adjusted his glasses, "Very well, and no need to be surprised Tohru, Rachel is a female name and plus, I'm a doctor."

Ayame brightened up, "Another Princess has come into the household; while at first I may have mistaken her as a Prince, she is truly a beauty, Miss Bayley." He stood up and waltzed over to Rachel, picking up her hand and diving down for a kiss.

Yuki snatched Rachel's hand away from Ayame; "Don't you even think of doing that." Soon a staring contest came on between Yuki and Ayame, Rachel being caught in the middle.

Ayame was the one to look away first; "Alright Yuki, I won't come in-between you and your Princess." Rachel and Yuki flushed deeply, "But you must allow me to take you on your first date?" An idea popped into Ayame's head, "Ah! Christmas is coming up in a month or so, ne? You two should spend the day toge-" A hand on Ayame's shoulder stopped him from talking.

"That's enough Ayame, leave those two alone." Hatori said, nodding towards Yuki and Rachel, who quickly took a seat at the table. Hatori sat down at his original position, where everyone was gathered.

Hatori picked up his tea, "There is a reason that I came today-"

Kyo slammed his fist on the table, causing all the cups to jump, "Then why did you bring that sick bastard?" He pointed to Ayame, while Ayame faked an offended expression. "Kyo, I'm hurt."

Hatori simply stared at Kyo, "As I was saying. I came today to inform Tohru and Rachel that Akito has requested they come to the estate to dine with him one evening." Everyone at the table remained silent. And Shigure's eyes widened as he recalled what happened earlier that day. "He said that Yuki and Kyo are not to attend, they are not welcome. However you are welcome, Shigure."

Kyo and Yuki stand up from their seats, their aura's flaring up. "No way Hatori! I'm not leaving those two with that damn Akito! No way in hell!" Kyo shouted, his fist clenched.

"The stupid cat has a point; I don't think I can allow the two to go. Tell Akito that they can't attend." Yuki said, hoping that there was a chance that they didn't have to go.

Hatori sighed, "I had a feeling this would happen. I'm afraid that means we won't be staying the night Ayame." Hatori stood from his spot, "Rachel, a moment please." He left the room, causing everyone to watch in wonder, he had dropped the request so easily, something must be up.

Rachel got up, "Better, um, go talk to him, for whatever reason Dr. Sohma wants me for." She wandered over to the door and out near the staircase. She saw Hatori outside, a cigarette in hand. "Dr. Sohma?" Rachel questioned, "Did you need something?"

Hatori turned around, "You may call me Hatori, Rachel." He took a deep breath into the cigarette and then threw it out into the bushes. "Akito seems to have lost interest in Tohru after he had found out about you, and has requested me to do this, so I hope you won't harbour any ill feelings towards me."

Rachel frowned at him in confusion, "I don't understand," She said as he walked towards her, "You haven't done any…" She felt Hatori stab her in the arm, and her body go weak, "thing…" She collapsed to the ground.

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"Thank you Hatori," Akito said, looking down at the girl who lay on a futon in his room, "for bringing her to me. I had hoped that we'd be able to meet as soon as I heard of her arrival." He knelt down at her side and lightly touched her face. "After the stories of her from Shigure, I thought it would be nice to see her. Before they got attached to her."

Hatori watched Akito wearily, "Of course Akito. Do you want me to take her to the spare room to let her rest?" Akito's hands stiffened on her face, and he began scratching her skin lightly. Pale pink marks trailed down her cheek and all the places that Akito run his nails down.

"No. Keep her here. I'll watch over her. You leave."

Rachel began to wake up a little, she moaned lightly. Hatori looked from Akito to Rachel, back to Akito. Akito looked up at him expectantly, so Hatori nodded and left the room silently, hoping she would be okay left with Akito.

Rachel began blinking rapidly, trying to clear her vision from being blurry. "Mmmm…" She murmured, "Where am I?" She gazed up at Akito a blank expression on her face. "Akito?" She questioned to herself. She reached up and touched the hand on her face, "You're cold, you should put a blanket around your shoulders." She quietly said, she received an unbelievable look from Akito, but it soon changed into an amused expression.

"Miss Rachel Bayley, do you know why you are here?" Akito asked the girl below him, he stopped scratching her face and simply laid his hand there. Once she shook her head he continued, "I have brought you here to my room for the rest of your weekend, you are going to stay here and take care of me. If you please me then I will allow you to stay in that house, Shigure's house. But if you displease me," He gripped her face, receiving a satisfying whimper from Rachel, "You will become my prisoner until I become bored with you. Understand?"

Rachel's eyes untightened, she nodded, "Okay." She smiled, a warm feeling rushing through her, "If that makes you happy, it could be fun."

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**End of Chapter 4**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

**Warning: From now on it will definately be Rated T. If you are uncomfortable with this Chapter, then do not proceed to read the rest of the story. Thank you.**

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Rachel quickly ran back to Akito's room, a tray with tea in her hand. "Master Akito, is it okay to come in?" She huffed, it was the last day that she was going to be here and she had been running around all day, in a silly maid uniform nonetheless. She heard Akito give permission for her to enter. She pushed the door open, quickly kneeled in front of him and placed the tray down. "The tea you asked for, Master Akito."

Akito looked over to Rachel from his bed, he slowly got up and moved his way over to her, he pushed away the tray, the teapot and cups going everywhere. He shoved her down on the ground and pinned her to the floor. "Another order, Rachel." He murmured down to her ears, "You must let me have my way with you. Understand?" He watched as the shocked girl below him sighed.

"Really, Master Akito? Please excuse my rudeness, but you have said that many times before." She looked up at him with a bored expression. "You don't have the strength to even undress by yourself."

Akito seethed for a moment, he reached down and ripped the top of the maid uniform off, receiving a small "eep" from Rachel. "No Strength?" He growled, tearing off more of the uniform until she was left in was the light singlet and petticoat she wore underneath. Her expression did not change. "I have…" Akito wobbled on his hands a little, "All the strength…" He fell onto her a little, "I need." He laid completely on top her, completely out of energy.

Rachel sighed and shifted from underneath him; she moved him to a more comfortable position on the floor and placed a blanket over him. "Master Akito, you should wait until you feel better." She smiled down at him before going to clean up the crushed tea set. "Not that I particularly want to 'let you have your way'," she giggled, "but if you really want to, you can." She turned to him and winked, "If you can."

Akito glared at Rachel from his position on the ground, "Don't be rude to your master, that's an order."

Rachel scooped up the tray with all the broken glass and placed it near the door. "Of course, Master Akito." She turned back to him, "Oh, Akito…" She murmured, "I mean, Master Akito… Your hand." She looked down at his hand, which dripped some blood from a cut on his hand. She quickly ran over to the drawers and pulled out a first aid kit and started cleaning up the cut on his hand.

"You should be more careful." Rachel said quietly, she felt herself get a little dizzy but she tried to shake it off. "I don't think it's good for you to lose any blood. Right?" She finished bandaging up the cut and looked down at Akito, who watched her curiously. She couldn't stop her heart skipping a beat. She stood up quickly, a light flush on her cheeks.

"My clothes are ruined, as you have noticed, may I please go get some more?" She questioned nervously, she walked towards the door, her cheeks returning to normal.

Akito looked away, "No."

Rachel sighed, "Okay, Master Akito. Although I don't see the appeal." She walked back to Akito and waved her hand in front of her chest, "I'm as flat as a boy." She kneeled next to the blanket. "Is there anything else you request? Hatori said he is going to 'collect' me in a few minutes."

Akito glanced over to her, "My request remains the same." He lifted himself up so he was at the same level as Rachel. He placed a hand on her shoulder, "I have the strength." He slipped off one of the straps of her singlet, and slowly moved to the second.

When both straps fell and her singlet hung low, Rachel's cheeks became slightly pink, Akito only ever got as far as ripping a bit of the dress, but that's it. But now he's about to take off the singlet, and all that would be left is her training bra and petticoat. She still didn't see why he was so interested in her; she was mistaken for a boy most the time. And wasn't this considered sexual harassment? How does he get away with this? She felt Akito move his lips to her neck, sucking until a deep mark was left on her skin, he want just about to remove the singlet until-

The door to Akito's room swung open, to reveal Shigure, Hatori and Yuki, who all paused for a moment to take in what was in front of them. Akito, holding an almost-naked Rachel rather forcefully in place, as he had his lips at her neck.

"Ah, Hatori, Shigure, Yuki, you came to pick me up?" Rachel asked rather obliviously, and felt Akito release her.

Akito looked at the three embarrassed men at the door, "Do you mind?" He growled. "We're busy."

Yuki felt anger well up inside him; he nudged Hatori in the back to get him to say something.

"It's time for Rachel to leave, Akito. And you need to have a check up." Hatori said forcefully and formally, "Rachel, come here."

Rachel turned to Akito, "Thank you for treating me so nicely, Master Akito." She bowed towards him, and looked back up. She could have almost sworn she saw a bit of disappointment in Akito's eyes. She quickly leaned over and kissed his cheek lightly, "It has been fun." She stood up and trotted over to the others, she could have sworn Shigure had a bit of blood dripping down his nose, but soon enough Yuki's jacket had surrounded her and distracted her from him.

The door to Akito's room closed, and Akito held onto the ripped pieces of uniform in his hand, a hard and… Hurt look on his face? Rachel couldn't tell she didn't get a good enough look.

They walked silently down the halls, towards the exit. Yuki was the first to speak to Rachel, "Bayley, Akito, he didn't, you know…" He stuttered a little, flushed with embarrassment and anger. "Take advantage of you, did he?"

Rachel looked up at Yuki, "I won't lie, he tried." Yuki's face paled, along with Shigure's who listened into the conversation, "But Akito," She looked in front of her softly, "he has no energy to forcefully make me do it. He made me his slave, yes, but he never requested me to do anything like that to him, he always told me to let him have his way." She smiled up at him, "He would only get as far as removing the top layer of clothes, then he would collapse and soon fall asleep. So don't worry Yuki, nothing happened."

Yuki sighed in relief, "I'm glad Bayley." He looked at her and stopped her from walking, getting the jacket and doing up the buttons. "I was worried when I noticed you disappeared when Hatori left the house, you should have come and at least told someone you were leaving."

Rachel looked up at him with a confused expression, "But I didn't go by will Yuki. Hatori," She looked at the Doctor who was conversing with Shigure, "he done something to me, and then I collapsed. Next thing I knew I was awake in Akito's room, and my cheek kind of hurt." She frowned and rubbed her cheek.

Yuki finished the buttons and looked up to glare at Hatori, who gave him the look of "you-never-asked". He looked back down to Rachel, and placed a hand on her back to continue her walking. "What else did Akito make you do?"

Rachel looked down in thought, "Well, he made me make him tea, clean his room, make his bed, bring him food and such, dress him, tend to his fever that he got on Saturday and get him some medicine from Hatori, oh and wear a maid uniform. But besides that nothing." She looked up at Yuki who stared at her with wide eyes. "What?"

"He made you dress him? And wear a maid uniform?" Yuki asked in disbelief.

Shigure laughed lightly beside him, "Ah, Akito has good taste in orders." He received a glare from Yuki.

Rachel looked up at them both and shrugged, "Doing those kinds of things doesn't particularly bother me, I'm not too good at cooking, but when my grandfather was alive I had to take care of him when my parents were away." She blinked as she exited the house and into the sun, "Oh wow it's bright." She mumbled to herself.

"Your grandfather was a lucky one." Shigure snickered again, receiving another glare from Yuki. "Alright, alright, I'll stop… for today."

"Rachel!" Tohru's voice called from outside the gates, with her Kyo rested against the wall and looked over with an annoyed expression. Tohru ran towards Rachel and gave her a big hug. "We were so worried about you; I'm so glad your okay! Akito didn't do anything thing to you, did he? I was worried that we might never see you again, but now it's so good to see you!"

Rachel patted Tohru on the back, "It's good to see you too Tohru." She grinned at Kyo who stared at them with an annoyed expression. "I think Kyo is getting annoyed waiting out there." She released Tohru from the hug and smiled. "Let's go home, I haven't done any of my homework!" They all left the estate, and began heading towards a rather large car. They all entered and Rachel stood at the door looking at the estate one last time, just barely seeing Akito from the window of his room. She got in and closed the door gently.

* * *

Rachel sat on her bed, her books around her laying open and the pages of her notebook blank and incomplete. She hung her head low, "I don't understand this one bit. These stupid books expect me to know things that I don't." She sniffed, "It's not my fault I'm not Japanese! Can't they give me a break!" She closed the textbook in front of her with a huff.

Knock knock.

Rachel looked up from the new textbook she had begun to read, "Ah, yes? Come in!" The door opened and Kyo crossed his arms in front of her.

"Yo, go get groceries." He said simply, looking up at her angrily.

Rachel stared at him for a moment, before frowning. "Excuse me?" She flung her legs off the side of the bed and stood up. "You could at least say please." She walked in front of him and mimicked his pose of crossed arms.

Kyo sighed angrily, "Look, normally Tohru would go but she's gone somewhere with that damn rat again and we need them. So…" He looked to the side with slightly pinkish cheeks, "Please."

Rachel's frown turned into a bright smile, "Well since you said please, I'll go." Kyo grunted and moved down the hall; Rachel stuck her head out the doorway and called back to him. "You're welcome!" Rachel looked back into the room, _'I'll do anything as long as I get to procrastinate.'_ She rummaged through the clothes Tohru gave her, "Maybe I should wear something else…" She murmured to herself, "If I meet someone from school, it might be odd if I'm wearing girls clothes." She looked over at Yuki's drawer. "I guess, he wouldn't' mind if I explained it to him…" She picked out some of the clothes she was familiar with and a pair of jeans that seemed like they were never worn. She quickly changed and picked up the coat Yuki can given her earlier that day.

"I'm off!" She called out to no one in particular, and she exited the house and headed up the dirt trail to the main road. She stuffed the grocery money envelope in her pocket, and began walking towards the shops that are down the road.

"I've been down the shop with Tohru once before but…" Rachel began speaking to herself, "I don't even know if this is the right way. Maybe I should have gotten Kyo to write out a map." She giggled to herself, "But then again, he can't read maps that well can he? I guess he wouldn't be able to write one too well either… Eh?" She looked ahead of herself, and recognised the hair of a white-headed boy and a blonde one.

Rachel continued walking ahead, watching the two boys carefully. As she passed them, she couldn't help but stare at them.

"Momiji, I don't think Kagura needs another orange cat as a New Years gift. She has enough already." The tall boy in a cowboy outfit spoke to the shorter one next to him.

"Aww!" The smaller one whined, "But Kagura says every year that she would of rathered one. She's always so hard to buy for!"

Rachel stopped for a moment, only a few feet away. "Ah… Well…" She caught the attention of the two boys; she froze up in her spot as they continued to stare at her. "Sorry, I couldn't help overhear you two but, well um, if this… Kagura… Likes orange cats so much. M-maybe she would like a cat pendant? Or a bracelet. I'm sure that someone would make something besides stuffed toys."

"Ah!" Momiji cried out in happiness, "That's really smart!" He turned to the boy next to him, "Don't you agree Haru? Kagura would like a necklace or something like that!"

Haru nodded, "Yeah." He continued to stare at Rachel.

Rachel flushed, "S-Sorry again." She bowed to them, and stepped back. "It was nice meeting you." She quickly began to walk off.

Momiji held out his hand to her, "Ah, wai-" Haru put a hand on his arm.

"Stop Momiji. I've seen him somewhere before." Haru commented, "Walking around the main house…"

Momiji looked up at Haru curiously, "Does he work at the house?"

"Yeah." Haru commented, "But when I saw him, he was wearing a maid uniform." Both the boys fell silent for a moment.

Momiji gasped and looked back at Rachel, "Do you think that, he's a she?" He began running towards Rachel, "Come on let's go find out!" Momiji grabbed Haru's hand and skipped towards her. "Excuse me! Sir!" He successfully caught Rachel's attention, stopping her in her tracks. "Excuse me sir but," He looked up at her innocently, "Are you a girl?"

Rachel froze in her spot, "A g-girl?" She fiddled in her spot, _'I guess I might confuse people if I dress like a boy, and sound like a girl.'_ "Well um…" She mumbled.

"Ah! Rachel!" A voice called in the distance, the three of them turned towards the voice. Who turned out to be Shigure, he approached them waving some sort of paper in his hand. When he reached them, he turned to Haru and Momiji. "Momiji, Haru, I see you met our little flower? But Rachel, why are you dressed like a boy?" Shigure questioned, "You look so much cuter as a girl."

"Ah…" Rachel began, beside her Momiji called out. "I knew it, she was a girl!"

"Never mind that, I came here to give you something Rachel." He handed her another envelope. "It's for some clothes. I noticed you didn't have any underwear, so I thought you could use some extra money to buy some." He winked at her.

"Sh-Shigure!" Rachel yelled, blushing madly. "You went through my clothes?"

Shigure pulled an over the top pose, his hand held to his heart, "Why of course! I had to make sure our young flower had everything she needed. I can't have her walking around outside without a brazier, I don't want old perverted men spying on my dear Rachel. Only I am allowed to do so!"

Rachel took a step back, a look of disbelief on her face. She stomped away from the three, "Thanks Shi-gu-re!" She said sarcastically, "I'll make sure it's bright and frilly, and I'll model it for you right after I kill you!" She shouted and ran off.

"You shouldn't have said that." Haru said, a bored expression on his face. Next to him Shigure laughed half-heartedly.

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**End of Chapter 5.**

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A/N: Just so you know, I always imagined the male Akito being very, perverted. He always seemed like the type to me who find it fun to see others in distress when he would do stuff like that to them. Of course, he would never go all the way, unless he had a small amount of feeling for them. Cause you know guys, I don't think they can go very far if they don't feel attracted to the female, right? ;)

Besides, I'm a rather perverted person. On paper at least.

Thank you for reading; 6 more chapters to go. Review please. :)


	6. Chapter 6

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**Chapter 6**

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Rachel lay on top of her bed in thought,

_'It's hard to believe that it's already been so long.'_ She thought to herself, _'It seems only yesterday that I arrived here, and now it has already been a few months. I've met so many more of the Sohma's now, I see why Tohru has been so excited to meet them too.'_ She sighed, _'She's lucky she isn't the one forced to be Akito's slave. Akito has been telling me to go visit him every now and then, I'm surprised I was able to pass all my tests. But…' _She smiled,_ 'I'll admit it's been rather fun. Akito isn't as bad as I thought. Although, I worry about the day he has enough strength to do what he has always vowed to do. He's been getting stronger, but, his request for…' _She felt herself blush at the thought, _'He hasn't been asking for that lately. I wonder what is wrong. I wish I could tell everyone that I was going to visit him, but I have to make up all sorts of excuses now. I can't keep this up. But they would flip if they knew.'_

"Bayley?" Yuki questioned, getting the attention of the daydreaming girl on her bed. "Do you want to come and help out with the New Year's preparations?"

Rachel sat up quickly, "Oh right! I forgot about that custom!" She said, she shifted up her sleeves, "Don't worry I'm on it!" She ran past Yuki and down the stairs.

Yuki watched her with a confused expression, "I wonder what is wrong with Bayley…" He questioned.

Rachel ran around the house with a feather duster, dusting everything she could get her hands off, trying to shake her mind of the thoughts of Akito. _'Akito is just doing this cause I cling to Yuki so much; he's doing it to hurt him…'_ She stopped dusting for a moment, a sad face slowly fading on her, _'At least I'm pretending that I work instead, I don't have to worry about Yuki being upset about the fact I'm going to Akito's every weekend.' _She started to dust again, at a slower pace now.

"Done!" Rachel heard Tohru call out from behind her, Tohru stood up and wiped her forehead. "The house is done now everyone! We can finally relax! You all worked so hard." She took off the handkerchief that she had tied around her head, "I'll get started on the Soba noodles now." She walked to the kitchen, a bright smile on her face.

Rachel smiled at Tohru as she walked past, _'She works so hard, I wish I could be more like her.'_

"Have you finished yet?"

Rachel turned around, and smiled at Kyo who looked at her blankly. "Oh yeah. I'm done." She placed the duster on the table, "I guess I was daydreaming there." She giggled lightly, "Is there something you needed?"

Kyo took a step back, "Argh, No." He scratched the back of his head, "I was just-ah-just worried that's all. Tohru usually ends up bumping into something or breaking something when she's daydreaming and I wanted to make sure you…" He trailed off, "Argh just forget it!" Kyo stormed off.

Rachel reached out, "Wait Kyo!" She grabbed onto the back of his shirt, causing him to stop. Accidentally, she bumped into him for a moment. The two squeezed their eyes shut, bracing for the explosion that would soon follow.

Nothing came.

Kyo turned around in shock, "What the hell!" He placed his hands all over his body, "Why didn't I transform?" He looked at Rachel, "Did you even bump into me or was I just imagining it?" Rachel just stared at him for a moment, "Well! Are you going to say anything or what?"

Rachel seemed to snap out of it, "Oh! Sorry! I um…" She stared at him again, "I don't understand either, as far as my knowledge goes this has never happened…"

Kyo just grunted, "What would you know about the curse anyway?" Rachel just frozen up, and started spurting out random words of agreement. Steps came down the stairs, Yuki soon appearing in the room.

"What caused the racket this time? I hope you didn't fall through the door again you stupid cat." Yuki sighed, shaking his head at Kyo.

"Don't be an idiot you rat!" Kyo spat and he pointed at Rachel, "She just bumped into me and nothing happened!" Yuki looked at her in shock, "Yeah…" Kyo mumbled, "That's what I thought."

Rachel just shook her hands in front of her, "Maybe there wasn't enough contact for anything to happen!" She took a step away from the boys, "I mean, it was just a slight bump, it might not have been enough!" She repeated, and looked down to her shoes.

Yuki placed a hand on his chin, "This is a matter definitely worth looking into. Perhaps you should hug someone again, just in case they might not transform."

Kyo started to walk away, "She's probably right, and there's no way I'm becoming a test dummy!" He left the room and slammed the sliding door behind him.

Rachel jolted at the noise, and looked cautiously at Yuki. "So um, should I… Hug you?" She blushed lightly as she received a nod from Yuki. She stepped forward a little, and cleared her throat. "Could you help me out, I mean… I don't usually hug people and I find it a little awkward if I'm doing it by myself."

"Oh..." Yuki begun, "Yeah, sure." He always walked forward, and wrapped his arms around her gently. They both waited a moment; when nothing happened, Yuki tightened his arms around her, "Nothing's happening…" He murmured, breathing in the scent of her hair. "It's strange…"

Rachel closed her eyes, "Yeah… But…" She brought her arms around him also, "It's nice…"

"Oh my gosh!" Yuki and Rachel both turned towards Tohru who stood at the door to the Kitchen, "Yuki! You're not transforming!" Yuki and Rachel looked to each other, and quickly parted, mumbling an agreement. Tohru walked towards them in excitement. "This is amazing! Did the curse break? What happ-" Tohru accidently tripped over, landing on Yuki.

An explosion sounded through the house.

"I'm so sorry! I thought that the curse was broken for a moment, and I guess I was being a bit careless! I'm sorry! Please forgive me, I really didn't mean to fall on you like tha-"

"It's alright Miss Honda, but…" The two of them looked up at Rachel, "How come when Bayley hugged me I didn't transform?" They looked at her expectantly.

Rachel held her hands in front of her, "I-I don't know. I have no cl-" Rachel's thoughts popped back to her home her memories were strangely fuzzy but, she knew wasn't actually from here, could that have affected her? Maybe she's not able to cause the transformation because she isn't supposed to exist. "No…" She murmured.

"What is it Rachel?" Tohru asked, looking over at her worryingly.

Rachel looked at her in shock, "It's nothing! Don't worry! I was just thinking of possible things. I don't know…" She trailed off, another explosion sounded as Yuki returned to normal, Rachel spun around to avoid looking at him. "I um, I'm going to my room for a moment. Sorry!" She ran up the stairs and toward her room. She opened the door and soon collapsed on her bed. "This isn't good. This isn't good. What would they do if they knew?"

"Knew what?"

Rachel looked up from her bed, over to Yuki. _'He got changed really fast…' _"You followed me?" Yuki stepped into the room and closed the door behind him.

"It's only natural, after what just happened." He sat on the end of her bed, "What would we do if we knew what, Bayley?" Yuki looked at her, "Does it have something to do with the fact Kyo and I didn't transform?"

Rachel sighed, _'I guess I can't keep it a secret forever.'_ "Yeah. It does."

Yuki sighed and looked at her seriously, he opened his mouth, closed it, and opened it again, "So, you're a boy who likes to wear women's underwear…?" He finally said.

Rachel flinched and held up her hands in defence, "E-excuse me?" She looked at Yuki in disbelief, who coughed lightly, a blush on his cheeks. "I'm a girl, I swear!"

"It's okay if you are a boy, everyone has secrets-"

"N-no!" Rachel grabbed his hands and pressed them against her chest, "I'm a girl! See! They're a bit small, but you can feel them right? So, don't think like that! I'm a girl-" She paused for a moment, taking in Yuki's wide eyes and pink face, she soon mimicked his expression. "Uh…" She removed his hands, "Sorry, I didn't think."

Yuki looked away from Rachel, his hand on his mouth, "It's… Okay. You were just trying to prove yourself. I would have done the same thing." He looked over at Rachel, "If that isn't it, what else is there? Are you a Sohma?"

Rachel shook her head, "No… I… I'm not from here."

Yuki nodded, trying to forget the earlier moments and understand the situation, "I'm aware that you're from Australia, but what would that have to do with anything?"

Rachel's face saddened, "It's not just that, I… I'm not from this world." She looked at Yuki's confused expression. "I'm… From a different dimension, where, this world is actually an anime, a television show. I was up late one night, watching it, when lightning struck and I woke here." Yuki still didn't answer. "I know it's hard to believe, but it's true."

"An anime..?" Yuki finally spoke, "Really? You aren't kidding with me Bayley, are you?"

Rachel shook her head, "No. I'm not kidding, but me coming here, it has caused this world to come alive in my opinion. You have thoughts and live like real people, so I wouldn't call you an anime anymore."

Yuki looked down at the floor, "I see." Yuki stood up and walked to the door.

"Wait," Rachel stopped him, "You don't, think of me differently do you? I'm still the same person, I'm still me. You are still you. Nothing has changed, it's just, I'm not supposed to exist here, that's why I'm different. That's why, you're not different here; I am. So please, don't, don't hate me…" Rachel spoke, the hurt was apparent in her voice, "I wouldn't be able to bear that."

Yuki turned towards her, looking at her for a moment he walked back over and in front of her. "Y-Yuki?" He heard her say; he grasped her hand and pulled her up to her feet. He looked into her eyes for a moment, before opening his mouth, "I don't hate you, Bayley. I'm just a bit confused, you would be too, and I assume you are. This isn't your home, and I guess in this situation this world isn't the strange one. You are," Rachel looked at him sadly, "But that doesn't change my feelings for you. Because I," He hugged her tightly, "I'm glad I met you."

Rachel felt tears prick her eyes, "Thank you Yuki, thank you." She closed her eyes tightly and held him close to her. "I'll make sure that I'll use this difference in a good way, I'll use it to help you."

* * *

"I'll be there in a second Master Akito!" Rachel called, quickly putting the cups on the tray and rushing off to Akito's room. _'Akito drinks way too much green tea in my opinion, and without sugar nonetheless. I don't know how he does it.'_ She pushed open the door to his room and placed the tray on the new table they had brought into his room. "Your tea, Master Akito." She looked up at the bed, only to find it empty. "A-Akito!" Rachel called out, and began searching the room. As seconds passed her panic grew, she slammed the sliding door to the outside garden open, scanning it for Akito. She saw him sitting next to the pond.

She sighed in relief and skipped over to him, "Master Akito, you should come inside. I don't want you to fall ill."

"I don't fall ill when I'm with you, Rachel." Akito said quietly, the wind blew past them, a silence filling the air for a moment, "In fact, your atmosphere makes me feel better, like you are giving me life." He looked up at Rachel, grabbed her hand and forced her to sit next to her. "The more time I spend with you, the stronger I feel."

Rachel laughed nervously, "I'm sure you are just happy to see me."

"But then," Akito continued ignoring her comment, "You would leave. And I would go back to the way I was before after a day or so." He looked at her, confused and almost caringly. "I need you, Rachel. Don't speak of this to anyone, that's an order, but…" He brought her into an embrace, "I want you to come to the New Years Banquet. You will attend as my personal guest, and if anyone questions why you are there, tell them to ask me. Understand?"

Rachel's gaze softened as she held onto him, "Master Akito…"

Akito breathed in, "I'll allow you to stay in Shigure's for as long as you wish. I can't have you staying here or it will become suspicious, I have to keep up my appearance as head of the family. Just promise me you will come and visit me every week."

Rachel nodded, "I promise Master Akito…" She felt Akito shift, and soon she was looking up at him.

Akito looked at her softly, "You may call me Akito now, when we are alone…" Akito sighed as he lowered his head to her neck, "Call me it now."

Rachel's breath hitched, "A-Akito…" _'Why is Akito acting like this, I don't understand. Usually he's so rude to me, bossing me around constantly. I always knew he had this side to him, I saw him worry when I tripped over occasionally, but he's never shown it to this extent before, anything remotely romantic just seemed like he was relieving sexual tension or something… But… Could it be, Akito…? Does he-'_ Rachel's thoughts cut out when Akito began leaving a small trail of kisses up her neck, over her jaw and towards the corner of her lips. She watched him pull away and stare at her for a moment, before leaning in once again to finish what he started.

"Akito."

Akito stopped, is lips an inch from Rachel's. He pulled away and stood up to look at the man who disturbed them. He glared at Hatori who stood in the doorway, "What do you want, Hatori?"

Hatori stood there for a moment, soaking in the information, "I came here to bring you to your room for your daily check-up. Rachel, help Akito here." He received a nod from Rachel, and she tried to help Akito to the door, but he shoved her off and walked up by himself.

'_Akito must be angry… Hatori always seems to interrupt him before he does anything drastic.'_ Rachel sighed and walked across the garden. _'I don't know if that's a good or bad thing…'_ As she entered the room, she watched as Hatori listened to Akito's heart and wrote some things down on the paper. He looked up at her, as if trying to look inside her. He might have noticed that Akito is better when she is around as well. She held a hand to her beating heart, _'Why is it that my heart beats like this when I'm around Akito… No, it's not just my heart beating so fast… And it's not only around Akito… Yuki… They both make my heart beat so fast. I don't know what to do… Because if I know anything…'_

'_I'm going to have to choose one of them…'_

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**End of Chapter 6**_

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**A/N: Sorry for the late update, busy the last few days with everyone wanting to hang out at the same time. Will update sooner I hope. :)**

**Cookies for Reviews. Good trade yes?**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

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Akito threw some fabric at Rachel, who was cleaning up the table at the time. "Tonight, I want you to wear that." He demanded, "That's an order." He looked over at her with a smirk, "I will leave here in a few minutes to go greet everyone; you on the other hand will wait until stay here until I come to get you." He stared at her harshly for a moment, then sighed, and kneeled next to her, taking the dress off her gently and placing it beside them. He spoke to her gently, "When you come in, you may greet people as long as I'm with you. You will not talk to anyone by yourself, unless it is Hatori. I'm sure he would not talk to you unless it's important."

Rachel blushed lightly, "Yes, I'll do that for you, Akito."

Akito closed his eyes, moved closer to her and placed his forehead to hers, "May I," He said quietly, "Do you need help to change?" He opened his eyes and looked at her; he slipped off the sleeve of her uniform, leaning in closer to her.

Knock knock.

"Akito, everyone is waiting." Hatori's voice came from outside, "I suggest you finish up and come outside."

Akito sighed, looking to the door and then back to Rachel, "Always Hatori…" He muttered under his breath, he got up and headed to the door. Rachel who watched him opened her mouth, her first words where stutters but she finally found her voice.

"Akito…" She stood up and walked to him, standing in front of the door. "Wait… Akito… I…" She stumbled for a moment, fiddling with the hem of her uniform. Akito looked down at her for a moment confused, but his confusion turned to a smirk. "What is this?" He questioned, he leaned down to her and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Could it be, you want," He paused, "A kiss?" Rachel looked at him with a flushed face.

'_What am I thinking, what would kissing Akito do? It would only make this more complicated. I don't even know if I'll be here forever and I…' _She looked up at him innocently, _'I know he won't either.'_ She pushed the side of his robe to his shoulder. "There… Better." Akito looked at her, a little disappointed. He nodded and left the room; Rachel leaned her back against the door, and slid down to the ground, her head in hand. "What do I do…? I don't… I don't know what to do…"

Rachel looked up to the dress that lay near the table, she picked it up. It was a beautiful Sakura patterned Kimono, with a silk white under dress. She ran her fingers down the fabric, she was sure it was hand-embroided; it was so soft to touch. She looked at the white obi that accompanied it; it had a similar design as the pink outer dress, along with a pink fan with a Sakura tree painted on the material. She removed her uniform and put on the kimono; she placed the small Sakura pin in her hair and waited for Akito to let her out of the room.

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Akito knocked on the door, "Rachel. Come out now." He opened the door to his room, and stared at her for a moment. "Rachel…" His breath became shorter, and a rosy hue brushed across his cheeks.

Rachel looked back at Akito, "Akito…" She murmured, she walked over and held a hand to his head, "Are you falling ill again?" Her eyes widened, "Akito! You have a fever!" She walked him over to his bed and sat him down. "Stay here, I'll go get Hatori. Please don't move around, I don't want it to get worse!" Rachel quickly exited the room, not hearing Akito's call for her to come back.

She ran in the direction the music came from, and she soon found herself in a large house, a beautiful ball room. She ran in, ignoring the stares of some of the guests and the murmurs, until she found Hatori with Shigure and Ayame. "Hatori! Akito has a fever! Please, you have to look at him!" Hatori looked over at Rachel, Shigure and Ayame were both alarmed when they saw her.

"Rachel, what are you doing here?" Shigure questioned, "Aren't you supposed to be at work?" He looked at Hatori who ignored Shigure.

Hatori nodded to Rachel, "Where is he now?" Rachel pointed outside, "In his room. Please I'm worried about him…" She watched as Hatori set off towards Akito's room, she followed after him closely.

"Bayley…?"

Rachel stopped in place, turning towards the voice, _'Oh no…'_ She thought to herself, as she took a good look at the person who spoke to her. "Yuki…" She looked at his shocked expression.

"W-what are you doing here?" He asked, "I was told you would be at work?"

Rachel frowned, "What about you? Who's with Tohru?"

Yuki shook his head, "Kyo is with her." He stepped towards her, "Why are you here? I'm confused, the New Year's celebrations is for the Sohma family."

Rachel hung her head low, "I was requested to come here. I, uh, I have to go though." She began walking off, "I'm sorry Yuki, you'll understand when I come back." She bowed and ran off. _'I hope Yuki doesn't get upset with me…'_

Rachel caught up with Hatori as he opened the door to Akito's room; Akito lay on the bed with his arms spread out. He shifted his head to look at the two who entered, "Rachel was mistaken; I don't have a fever." He watched at Hatori sighed and looked at Rachel.

"In any event, I will check on you anyway." Hatori said, he took the stethoscope from around his neck and listened into Akito's heart. Hatori watched as Akito stared at Rachel, who waiting at the door worryingly. "Your heartbeat is accelerated however it is nothing harmful." Hatori said knowingly, with a small smile. "You are still able to come out to the celebrations."

Akito pushed Hatori away, "I knew that." He got up and grabbed Rachel by the arm, bringing her out. "Come with me Rachel, I want you with me just in case." They headed back to the party, when they entered, all eyes landed on them. A few people approached them, as most of the night was spent with Akito talking to various guests.

Rachel watched all the people around her stare and whisper, she stayed close to Akito, afraid to lose him. "Akito…"

Akito turned coldly towards her, "Its Master Akito." The look on his face told Rachel that he didn't want to act this way. "Don't forget that again." Akito bowed to the person he was talking to and walked away, Rachel stumbling to follow him.

"Ah, Yuki!" Akito exclaimed, his voice calm. "So glad you could make it." Akito watched as Yuki turned around, his wide eyes taking in Akito and Rachel. Akito motioned towards Rachel, "You already know Rachel, I'm sure." He said coldly, "I hope you have been treating her kindly at Shigure's."

Yuki's eyes flickered from Rachel's to Akito's, "Yes. She is a pleasure to have in our house."

Akito smiled at Yuki, "Good, however," Akito moved Rachel closer to him, and brushed a stray hair from her cheek. "I have considered moving her to the estate, it would save her the trouble of travelling back and forth from Shigure to me, No?"

Rachel looked up at Akito in shock, _'Akito said that he couldn't have me stay here! Why is he saying that?' _She looked over at Yuki,_ 'He must be trying to toy with Yuki…' _Her gaze softened, _'Yuki… He doesn't know I have been visiting here… I'm sorry… Please don't be hurt Yuki…'_

Yuki looked at Rachel with a frown, "I was unaware she was visiting you frequently." Rachel looked away from him, so he looked up at Akito once again. "However it would be troublesome for her, to travel to school. Shigure's house is a more appropriate option for her."

Akito's smile wiped off his face, "I see. Well, we must go there are a lot of people to greet. Goodbye Yuki." Akito turned around, with Rachel's sleeve in hand. He didn't get far until he met with Hatori again, who whispered in his ear. Akito groaned and turned toward Rachel, "I'm afraid I will have to leave you momentarily, Rachel." He pointed at the clock above a doorframe on the far side of the room, "You are to meet me underneath the clock at precisely 12 o'clock. The Zodiac Banquet is going to start at that time, so you must not be late, that's an order." Akito stalked off, leaving Rachel in the middle of the room by herself.

Rachel sighed, _'I wish Yuki didn't look so hurt when he found out I had been visiting Akito. But what was I supposed to do? He would never let me go and then I wouldn't be able to become this close to Akito.'_ Rachel began walking around, keeping an eye out for a head of gray hair, _'I need to talk to Yuki, at least until 12 o'clock. I need to explain to him…'_ Rachel finally spotted him, "Yuki!" She called out, catching the boy's attention.

Yuki turned around, and looked at Rachel sadly, "Ah, Bayley." He looked around, "Where is Akito?" Yuki questioned, Rachel could tell he had a hard time saying that.

Rachel hung her head low, "Master Akito was called off somewhere, and I have to meet him under the clock at twelve." She looked up at Yuki, "I'm sorry, but I have to visit Akito. If I didn't, I don't know if I would still be able to be with you all." She felt Yuki's gaze soften on her.

"It's okay Bayley…" Yuki said, "I just don't want him to hurt you at all, but if he hasn't by now then there is a chance he might not." Yuki reached up and fingered the tips of her hair, "You look lovely tonight, Bayley."

Rachel blushed, "T-Thank you." She ran her hand down the dress, to smooth it out. "It is a beautiful kimono, isn't it?" She looked around, the murmurs of the people around her getting louder. She could see them gaze at her in interest, and a little bit of hate.

Yuki grabbed her hand, "Well while you are here, do you want to see my secret hiding spot?" They started to run off, outside the party and down the halls of the main house. "I had it when I was a child," He smiled down at Rachel childishly, she watched Yuki in shock, she never seen this part of him before. "I'd love to show you."

Rachel smiled as Yuki lead her outside and to the side of the wall that surrounded the whole estate. Yuki pushed a bush away from a corner, revealing a small opening in the wall. Rachel gasped as Yuki kneeled down, motioning her to follow. Rachel looked down at the hole, "Y-Yuki… I can't get the dress dirty…" She saw Yuki poke his head out from the wall.

"In that cause, you are wearing something underneath it right? Just take off the top layers and place them somewhere else…" Yuki said, watching as Rachel followed his advice, and climbed in after him.

Rachel climbed in close to Yuki, "It… it's a bit small." Rachel said, she was practically on top of him, she felt a blush rise on her cheeks.

Yuki smiled sweetly at her, "It's okay though, because I won't transform…" He said quietly, drawing her in by the waist until he was completely supporting her. "We have an hour until 12; why not rest here for a moment?" Yuki pressed his lips near her ear, "Besides, I feel like I need to be close to you… I don't understand, but I think it might have something to do with the fact I don't transform around you…" He breathed in. "Let's just stay here for a moment…"

Rachel looked up at Yuki, "Yuki…" _'When I came here, everything was so fun, so light and lively. But now…'_ She felt a blush rise with the simple touch Yuki was offering. _'My time here is so serious; I don't get to have fun anymore. I miss the old times, when I didn't have to choose between the two people I care most about. I hope tomorrow when I go back to Shigure's, everything will be back to normal.' _

**End of Chapter 7**

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A/N: Please review. :)


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

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Rachel waited under the clock, occasionally looking up at the time. _'It's only been 5 minutes, but it feels like 10… Where is he?' _She scanned the room for Akito, gasping when we felt arms wrap around her waist.

"Sorry for making you wait, Rachel."

Rachel recognised Akito's voice, "Master Akito…" She turned around and smiled, "You're late."

Akito gave her an amused smile, "Missed me did you?" He watched as the room before them slowly emptied. "We have half an hour before the Banquet, and it is accepted that I enter after everyone else. So in reality it starts at 12:40." He picked up her hand and lead her back to his room. "So until then, I have decided." He opened the door, allowing her to go in and closed it behind them.

Rachel turned around, hearing the click of the lock put into place. _'Akito normally doesn't lock his door, what is he doing?'_ "What have you decided?" She asked nervously, the look on Akito's face worried her; he looked, dare she say, evil.

Akito advanced upon her, pulling her into an embrace and holding himself painfully close to her. "I've decided… No one will interrupt this time." He pulled away for a moment, and then leaned into her taking her lips with his.

Rachel froze up, _'Akito?'_ She felt a heavy blush fall on her cheeks as Akito roughly caressed her cheek. His other hand held her tightly by the waist and he moved his hand from her jaw to her Kimono. Swiftly, he took off the obi and slipped off the leaves of the first Kimono. Breaking the kiss for air, Rachel took the time to talk; "A-Akito, wait…" Her words didn't seem to reach him, something she was both happy and upset for, "Maybe we sh-should…" Akito threw away the pink outer kimono and ran his hands over the white one underneath. "Ak-kito… Please, I… I don't know if we should do this… I…" She let out a small cry as Akito's hand brushed past her, sending a jolt of electricity through her.

Akito groaned at the sound and stopped for a moment and locked his eyes with hers, "Shut up. Don't make a sound unless it's like that." He growled, he kissed her hard, speaking into her lips. "That's an order."

Rachel immediately became quiet, letting Akito do what he wanted. She knew that he would become tired and they wouldn't get far. She hoped at least.

Akito gripped her almost in desperation; he swiftly took off the white silk under Kimono, leaving Rachel in a white singlet and light-weight pants. He felt strong, so very strong at the moment, and he was trying hard to hold onto the feeling. He picked her up, ignoring Rachel's cries and warnings to let her down. He placed her on the bed and ripped off both layers of Kimono he wore, leaving him without a shirt and the same light pants Rachel wore. He leaned over Rachel, taking her appearance into memory. He groaned and took in her lips once more, pulling her up towards him and creating the most body contact as possible.

Rachel moaned lightly when she felt something hard press against her, her cheeks flushed even redder if it was possible. "A… Akito…" She murmured into his lips and squeaked a little when she felt him run his hands over her again.

Akito kept kissing her thoroughly, "Rachel… Tell me…" He said in between breaths. "Do you… Want me?" He squeezed different parts of her body, receiving satisfying reactions from her.

Rachel closed her eyes, trying to form coherent thoughts in her head, but every time he touched her, they would disappear into a light moan. "I…" _'It doesn't matter if I say yes or no… He would do what he wants any…'_ Her thoughts were cut off again. "Akito!" She called out softly.

Akito fiddled with the tie of the pants she wore, "No one…" He kissed her hard, pressing himself against her, "Will interrupt."

Knock knock.

Someone began fiddling with the knob of the door, "Akito?" Hatori's voice came through, "Why is the door locked? Everyone is waiting for you and Rachel to arrive. You're late."

Akito seethed, still pressing himself up to Rachel, "Say my name, and say it loud enough for Hatori to leave us alone." He breathed hard above her.

"Akito!" Rachel cried out, obeying Akito's order and also what she had wanted to do the moment he embraced her. Her breaths were timed with his as they waited for Hatori to speak.

"Akito." Hatori finally spoke, "She is underaged, if I unlock this door and find you have done anything inappropriate, I will send her home with Yuki and Shigure."

Akito just stared at her, boring is eyes into hers. He sighed and straightened his back, leaning down he kissed her forehead before gathering his kimono and throwing it back on. "Stay here Rachel; Hatori will stay here until you are ready to come to the Banquet." Akito went to the door, unlocked it and opened it angrily. "Did you hear that Dragon? I'm sure you did. Now do what I say, and if I find out you touched her at all, I will make sure you will regret it." Akito stalked off.

Hatori walked into the room, taking in the sight of Rachel sitting up on the bed and as red as a tomato. He sighed and closed the door, picking up the discarded Kimono from the floor and placing it beside her on the bed. "You know, you are the only person I think Akito would allow to speak up against him. If he tries to do anything you are uncomfortable with, please speak out."

Rachel simply nodded, "Um… Ha-Hatori… I don't know what to do…" She murmured, "I shouldn't be here, I shouldn't have agreed to come here from the very beginning. I should have just stayed away and… I shouldn't have fallen in love with Yuki and Akito…" She placed her head in her hands.

Hatori's eyes widened, "I was aware were affectionate of Yuki, Rachel. However Akito?" He shook his head, "It would be best to remain friends, at most."

Rachel stayed on the bed, looking down at the floor in thought. "I don't think I can go to the banquet then…" She glimpsed at Hatori, her cheeks flushed, "It's been too much today… I need to rest I can't…" She felt herself fall numb and fall to the ground, her world turning dark.

* * *

When Rachel came to, she recognised the room as Hatori's office. She sat up in the futon, holding her head in her hand; she could feel a painful throb on her skull. "What…" She mumbled to herself. She felt a hand push her down on the bed.

"Don't move around," Hatori ordered, "You've had a slight blow to your head."

Rachel kept her eyes barely open, "What happened, Hatori? Last thing I remember I was talking to you, on Akito's bed."

Hatori pulled out a thermometer from a black bag and placed it in her mouth, "It would seem you collapsed from stress and dehydration. I'm assuming you only drink tea with Akito?" He watched her nod. "Well, tea can dehydrate someone. You should start drinking some water for the next few days until you feel better. I also fear you might have a cold. I haven't seen someone pass out for that long since Akito pushed himself too hard once in the summer."

Rachel just nodded again and closed her eyes, "Ugh, I do feel awful. I hope I didn't cause Akito to get ill because of the cold." She had trouble speaking with the thermometer in her mouth.

"On the contrary, since you first met Akito he has strangely been what you may call, recovering from his illness." Hatori took out the thermometer and examined it, "Which under normal circumstances, is impossible." He frowned and wrote down some things in a clipboard that was next to his bag. "But you're not normal. Are you?"

Rachel froze up, looking up at him with wide eyes. "O-Of course I'm normal! Why would you suggest something like that?" She rolled over, looking away from Hatori.

Hatori sighed, "Yuki was able to carry you here from Akito's room. Without transforming. Not to mention your kindness to Akito seems to be link with some sort of past knowledge, especially since you knew about Kana." He packed away his bag and placed it near his desk, he stared at the photo on his bookshelf for a moment. He sat on his chair, looking down at Rachel.

Rachel gasped, "Yuki carried me here?"

Hatori nodded, "I told him to come help me instead of Akito because while Akito has been recovering lately, I don't want to put strain on his body." Hatori turned to his laptop, seeming to go to work. "But first, tell me this secret of yours. Why are you different from any other normal person?"

Rachel sighed, "It's something you shouldn't know." She placed her wrist over her eyes, "It's just, I don't even know myself. I don't remember much of my old life anyway…" She said without thinking, _'Wait… I don't remember much of my old life…?' _She thought to herself,_ 'Well, I'm from the real world, my names Rachel Bayley… I think… Do I have a middle name? I don't remember… I lived in… I lived in… Australia… That's right… Which part…?' _Rachel gasped, _'I don't remember!'_

Hatori typed away on his computer, "If you being here is affecting Akito's health, whether it is in a positive or negative way, then I would like to know. If you don't mind."

Rachel sat up, ignoring Hatori's stern look. "I'm… From the real world." She said, "I don't know how to explain it properly, Hatori. But I'm from a world where this one… Doesn't exist." _'It's probably best that no one else knows it was originally an anime…'_

Hatori stopped typing and looked over at Rachel, "Now is not a time to joke, Rachel."

"I'm not joking!" Rachel stood up, her fist held near her. "I'm serious Hatori! I don't, I don't even belong here. I'm not supposed to be here at all! That's why people don't transform around me, why Akito isn't affected by the curse around me! Why I know things about people that only they would know. I… I'm not supposed to even exist here." Rachel fell to her knees, tears coming out of her eyes. "I should be happy I'm here though, it is meant to be a dream come true but," She held her hand close to her chest, "it's not. I care about two people who would be so hurt if I chose the other. I… I need to get out of here Hatori… Until I can figure out whom I love the most… I have to go…"

Hatori watched her silently, "If you can't choose, then don't choose either." He saw Rachel look up at him in shock, "It's logical isn't it?"

Rachel's tears came out harder, they dripped down her cheeks silently, "But I… I love…" She sighed, the tears coming to a stop. "You're right, I should just keep living the way I have. I guess with the celebrations and everything that's happened today… I got a bit stressed." Rachel straightened up, not bothering to wipe the tears from her eyes. "Thank you Hatori." She smiled at him.

Hatori couldn't help but smile back, "You're welcome Rachel." Hatori put on his glasses, "Just so you know the banquet is still on. Akito is most likely waiting for you to arrive, I have a few notes to write down right now, so assure Akito I will be there."

Rachel nodded, "Okay, well, I can't keep him waiting." She breathed in, and exhaled loudly before heading down the halls, toward the banquet. She stood in front of the doors which she was sure lead into the dining room, sliding the door open she took a look into the room around her.

She had expected it to be a long table with the Zodiacs lined up on each side, but it appeared to be a small party, similar to the one she had attended before. Everyone was chatting animatedly, but still weary of Akito's watchful eye from his seat at the front of the room. In front of him, a small pillow was laid out, and she could feel Akito's impatience reaching her from the other side of the room. She walked past everyone elegantly, ignoring their silent stares as she passed.

"Akito." She said seriously, she saw him look up at her and his eyes widened. He stood up quickly and stepped towards her, obviously shocked to see her eyes still wet from tears. However she smiled, "Sorry I'm late."

Akito watched her silently, taking in her appearance before reaching for her hand and pulling her over to his chair. Sitting her down on it he reached up and wiped away a tear that was still present on her face. As if he was aware of the stares on him, he stood up frowning and coughed into his hand. "It's Master Akito." He looked around to everyone else, "What are you looking at?" He snapped, causing them to jump and look away, Ritsu also going off his head again apologizing. He turned back to Rachel and gave her a soft look.

Rachel giggled lightly and watched as Akito slipped away and conversed with the elder of the Zodiacs. She looked around the room; the hype that she had caused earlier had died down. She spotted Yuki in the corner of the room, watching her with a slightly hurt look on his face. She smiled at him and gave a little wave, startling him a bit. She watched him look around and walk towards her.

"Miss Bayley." He said softly when he was a few feet away from her.

Rachel looked at him in confusion, "Miss Bayley?"

Yuki sighed and nodded, "I should use formality here, Miss Bayley. If Akito catches me talking to you informally, well I'm afraid he might keep you here forever." He smiled sweetly, "However formality will allow me to do this." He lightly took her hand and kissed it.

Rachel smiled at Yuki, "Yuki…" He straightened up, the sweet smile still on his face. Rachel's expression saddened, "Do you know when this banquet will be over?"

Yuki picked out a pocket watch from his kimono, "It will be over in half an hour, a little after day break." He put the watch away, and looked at her worryingly, "How are you feeling? I was a bit shocked when Hatori asked me to help bring you to his office."

Rachel looked down, "Yes, I'm fine. Just a little stressed out today, it's been a little hectic. First you not transforming, to telling you my secret, to coming to the New Years party and Akito…" She blushed lightly at the memory.

Yuki frowned, "And Akito…" He urged her on.

"N-nothing!" Rachel defended, _'I wouldn't be able to tell him. It would hurt him too much.'_

"Miss Bayley, please, if Akito done anything to you then I want to know. I understand that you can't do anything to stop him, but I just need to know that… If you don't tell me, Akito would brag later." Yuki said, picking up her hand again.

Rachel sighed, "He was very… Active before the banquet. Luckily Hatori stopped him, before he got too far but…" Her face turned downcast, "He's getting stronger and stronger the more I'm with him. One day he's going to be able to, and Hatori might not be around to stop him."

Yuki clenched his jaw, "As soon as it's time to leave, we're going. You can say goodbye to Akito, but not without me. I'll make sure Hatori helps me out." Yuki patted her hand, a little blush on his cheeks, "I'll help you forget, okay?"

Rachel blushed, "O-okay…" _'How is he going to do that… No. Yuki's not like Akito… It'll probably be something like watching a movie, or tending to the garden. Oh wait, Yuki hasn't invited me to see the secret base yet. Oh well… Whatever it is. I know Yuki isn't like Akito… But is being like Akito really a bad thing...?'_

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**End of Chapter 8**

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A/N: Reviews are appreciated. :)


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

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"Mmmm…" Rachel mumbled, still half asleep. She curled up a little more in her bed, snuggling into the warmth she found beside her. Curiously, she ran her hand to the body that she found beside her, feeling smooth skin and the fabric of cotton clothing brush past her fingertips. Blinking her eyes open, she squinted up at the sleeping face of Yuki, who she just noticed had an arm around her. She continued to stare at him, a blush reaching up to her cheeks. She began freaking out in for mind as she watched him close up, _'What am I going to do? How did I even get here?' _She looked at the plain white sheets that enveloped her, _'This isn't my bed either! How am I going to explain this to Yuki, I probably got cold in the night and came over here without even realising what I was doing.'_

Rachel concluded that she should probably sneak out of the bed, if she got in there without him knowing, then she could get out right?

Slowly, Rachel picked up the arm that held her in place, and lifted it up. She started moving away, her legs trying to untangle themselves from the sheet. She shifted over to the side again, only to find that there was no side, and promptly fell off the bed bringing the blanket and not to mention Yuki down with her. Landing with an 'oof'.

Yuki immediately woke up, pushing himself up in shock and his eyes widely looking at Rachel and then scanning the area for any abnormalities. "Wha..?" He managed to spill out, looking back down to Rachel in confusion.

Rachel had to hands pressed up against Yuki's chest, supporting him slightly. Tears of failure fell down her face, "I'm so sorry! I must have come into your bed last night because it was so cold, and I wanted to get out before you noticed but the blanket was tangled in my feet and I fell off the bed and…" Rachel trailed off; looking away from the amused stare Yuki was giving her. "Could you not look at me like that, it makes me feel stupid."

Yuki chuckled lightly, barely loud enough for her to hear, "Bayley, you seem to have forgotten that I invited you in my bed." He smiled at the surprised face Rachel had, "You were shivering, I couldn't just leave you." He watched her nod, and slowly placed his forehead onto hers, breathing deeply. "Well since we are awake, let's go get something to eat. I'll take you out; you've never really explored the town before have you?" He frowned, "You still have a bit of a fever…"

Rachel smiled gently at him, "It sounds like fun." She looked at the position they were in, and hummed, "But I think we should move, if someone came and saw us in this position, they might begin questioning us." She giggled.

Yuki lifted himself off her, his gaze elsewhere and pink dancing across his features. "You're right." He coughed and helped her up before heading over to the window and opening the curtains, a stream of light coming into the room and lighting it up, "It'll be cold, so you should dress accordingly. I'll go see if Tohru has any of the washing done." He proceeded to leave the room, closing the door with a click.

Rachel let out a breath she had been holding in, pink also sprayed against her cheeks. She went to the drawer in the room she shared with Yuki; _'I'm still kind of surprised I'm still sharing a room with him, I thought Shigure would have moved me out by now claiming something about not letting Yuki deflower me or something.' _She giggled lightly, pulling out a light green dress, some stockings and her pure white coat. She changed eagerly, buttoning up the new coat with a bright smile.

Knock knock.

Rachel looked at the door with a jerk, running her hands down the coat nervously she answered the door, sliding it open and greeting Yuki. "Yuki…" She smiled sleepily.

Yuki reached down and touched the ends of her hair, taking in the white glow that surrounded her from the window in the room. He smiled gently down at her, "You look beautiful." He received a deep blush on Rachel's part.

"B-Beautiful?" She stumbled, "No, not me." She laughed lightly, "I can't say that I'm 'beautiful', but many people say I'm cute." She smiled brightly at the thought.

Yuki's smile only grew, "Well, you have got it very wrong." He grabbed her hand and led her down the stairs and out the door, "We're going out!"

* * *

The day had started out rather awkwardly; Rachel couldn't help but worry that it might have been a date they were on. She wasn't too sure, she didn't even remember if she ever went on a date nor had a boyfriend when she was in her world, let alone what people done on dates.

"Bayley…" Yuki said, a worried look on his face appeared when she jumped a little, "Are you okay? You seem a little jumpy."

Rachel stuttered slightly, "Ah… Ah… Yes. I'm fine. Just a little, nervous. I don't know." She fidgeted with her buttons on the coat, "Yuki, is this a date?" She blurted out, throwing her hands over her mouth and clamping it shut.

Yuki chuckled, "No, of course not. Just a meeting between friends, unless," An entertained smile spread across his face, "You would like it to be a date?" He teased, not without a light blush along his cheeks.

Rachel fell silent for a moment her fingers brushing her lips, "But… Is there even a difference?"

"Well," Yuki began, "if we are on a date, then we would be allowed to hold hands." He gently held the hand that was close to her face, "I would take you out for something to eat," He lead her to a small restaurant that they were headed towards, "And if you enjoy yourself, then you would allow me to kiss you and take you out again." He smiled at the embarrassed reaction Rachel gave, "So is it a date?"

Rachel stared at him, and gave him a sweet smile. "Let's get something to eat first." She watched his smile grow and brought her over to the restaurant on the corner of the street.

Yuki sat back in the chair, looking out into the street. "It's a lovely day today, a little warmer than it has over the past few days." He commented, and turned back to Rachel. "Ah, but it's not appropriate to talk about the weather on dates, isn't it?"

Rachel laughed, "I don't know, I think if two people like each other enough. It shouldn't really matter what they talk about."

Yuki smiled at her lightly, "So for us, is talking about the weather okay?"

"Of course." Rachel smiled, "Why wouldn't it be…?"

Yuki looked away, the smile still present, "Don't worry…"

Rachel sighed, "But, I think… We shouldn't call this a date, or go on a date either…" She watched Yuki's smile fade and a frown appear on his face. "Don't take it that way Yuki, it's just, me being here. It's not supposed to be…" Her words sounded as if they were hard to say, "I don't belong here." She felt her lips tremble slightly, and her eyes sting. "It would be best, if I didn't exist or if I found another way. I've caused a complete change in this world that isn't meant to happen. Which is why, if I have to stay here, if I do stay here, I should remain friends with everyone. No more." She looked up at Yuki, "Do you understand? I don't explain things well but-"

Yuki held up a hand, as if to silence her. "I understand what you are saying, Rachel." Rachel's eyes widened slightly at the use of her first name, "But I have to bring another 'if' into the equation." He leaned on the table to bring himself closer to her, "What if you came here for a reason?" He smiled, "What if you were supposed to change this world," Yuki felt uncomfortable referring to his home as a different world, but he continued. "Because maybe you were what was needed to change it for the better?"

Rachel stared at Yuki, "If… I was supposed to be here?" She shook her head, "That's silly, what could I do here to make it better? All I have done is… Nothing."

"But you have done something, you were the first ever outsider to be invited to the Zodiac Banquet." Yuki said, "The curse doesn't take affect around you," Yuki's eyes narrowed, in anger and… Something else Rachel couldn't put her finger on, "And as much as I hate to admit it, Akito… has softened since he met you, and he seems healthier too."

"Aki…to?" Rachel murmured, she frowned at the table, "Akito is weird." She said, pouting a little, "When we are alone, he treats me like…" She felt her heart beat a little faster, "Like I'm this amazing person. And then when we are in public, he treats me like the slave I was supposed to be in the first place. He treats everyone else no different, so how has he softened?"

Yuki nodded looking outside, not wanting to talk about the other man in Rachel's life. "He treats you like that in public because if people knew what you meant to him, then some might take the opportunity to hurt him just like he had hurt them." He looked at her, "Which is another reason why you should stay away from Akito, if he invites you to the estate; you should say you have assignments, tell him you can't."

Rachel frowned, "I can't, Akito needs me."

"I need you." Yuki said loudly, catching the attention of a few bystanders in the restaurant, "I need you too, Rachel."

Rachel remained silent for a second, slowly she begun shaking her head, "But it's not like I can have you both. I can't make both of you happy." She stood up in her seat, "If I choose you, Akito will be hurt, if I choose Akito, you will be hurt. I know it's hard to believe, Yuki, but I care for Akito, just like I care about you." She pushed her chair back in, ignoring the confused stare from Yuki, she then looked up and stared at him for a moment, thoughts processing and flying through her mind. "Do me a favour Yuki? Close your eyes."

Yuki watched her, and nodded slightly. Closing his eyes, hearing her say, "Please wait, don't open them. I have an idea, but I want it… to be a surprise, I guess?" Yuki waited, a frown slowly etching onto his face, "Rachel? How long to do I have to…" He felt a shiver run down his spine, and he promptly opened his eyes, seeing that she had disappeared. "Close my eyes…"

Yuki stood up abruptly, looking around wildly for Rachel. "Rachel?" He ran out the restaurant and pushed past people, looking out for a mess of strawberry hair but seeing nothing.

* * *

"Hatori!"

Hatori opened the door to Akito's chambers, he stared into the quiet room, gazing uncaringly at Akito. "Is there something you need? I'm sure Rachel would be more than happy to get it for you."

Akito kicked the small coffee table, breathing heavily, "That's the problem, Hatori. She's not here! Where is she, it's been three days already!" Akito kneeled down, his body having troubles staying up. "I feel awful." He muttered to himself.

Hatori looked worried momentarily, "I'm sure she is on her way, she might need time to recover after the new year's Banquet." He felt like something was a little off, Rachel usually came over as quickly as possible, and a few days were a long time for her to be late. "However I will call Shigure for you, see what is keeping her." After a heavy nod from Akito, Hatori left the room and to his office, picking up the phone and dialled Shigure's number.

Ring ring.

"Hello?" Shigure answered on the other side of the phone, "Mii? Is that you?" Coughing sounded on the other side of the phone, "I'm still oh so very sic-"

"Shut up Shigure, it's Hatori."

"Ah! Hatori! Such a lovely surprise, what do we owe the pleasure?"

"Is Rachel present? I wish to speak to her."

"Eh? Now that I think about it, I don't know where she is, I haven't seen her for days! Oh where, oh where is my lost flower?"

"…"

"Do not worry Hatori, I'm sure she is fine, maybe she is caring for Akito? Have you bothered to check?"

"She's not here; pass the phone to Yuki then. I want to speak to someone more responsible."

"Oh Hatori! Am I not responsible enough for you? You break my hear-" Crashes sounded on the other end of the phone.

"Hatori?"

"Ah Yuki, have you seen Rachel?"

"…"

"Yuki?"

"She's not over there with… Akito?"

"… No. She isn't. Is there a problem?"

"She's disappeared."

"… Please explain."

"I was with her the day after New Years, but then she ran off. She thinks she doesn't belong here, and that she's causing people pain."

"I see. I'll send out cars."

"Thank you, I was thinking of calling you, but I wanted to try and find her myself first."

"You should have called me immediately; Akito's health is falling back into usual patterns, causing him to become grouchier than usual."

"… That also was what I wanted to talk about. I don't want her seeing Akito anymore."

"Yuki."

"No Hatori! He's not good for her; he'll end up hurting her."

"Actually Yuki, he treats her very kindly surprisingly. I've watched them from my office when they are in the garden, he treasures her."

"… But, Hatori…"

"Now is not the time to let yourself be jealous. Rachel is the only one who can help Akito live long and happily. If she is with him, he might be more lenient with other's having relationships. He treats others harshly because no one has ever shown him true kindness, like Rachel."

"I see."

"Perhaps you have to see it for yourself."

"What do you mean?"

"Once we find Rachel, Akito will demand to see her. I want you to watch them with me. Then you might understand."

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**End of Chapter 9**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

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"You know, I heard the adults talking Haru, about Rachel?" Momiji spoke to Hatsuharu, drinking from his canned-tea. "They say she went missing, and Akito has gone berserk."

"Mm." Hatsuharu grunted, not particularly interested in the conversation. He looked to the side, down an alleyway he didn't remember being there before. "Momiji." He pointed in the alleyway, "Was that always there?"

Momiji's eyes lit up, "I've never been in there before!" He jumped up and down with his ears popping out of his head, and began dragging Hatsuharu into the alley, "Let's explore it! Maybe we'll find something interesting…" His ears flopped down as he looked at the unconscious girl lying behind a garbage bin. She was flushed and sweating heavily, her breath came out in short breaths and her red hair stuck to her face.

Hatsuharu bent down and felt her forehead, taking a good look at her. "Ah-huh. I see. Call Hatori, Momiji. I think we just found her." He bent down and threw her over his shoulder, expecting himself to transform and carry her as a cow. But nothing happened. "Ah."

Momiji stared with wide eyes and waited for the call to come through, "Haru… You didn't transform…" Momiji heard Hatori pick up the phone. "Ah, Hatori. We found Rachel in an alley. On the corner of Higuran and Tatemiki street. You said she went missing a week ago right? To Ayame right? Yeah. She looks really sick. You should hurry." He nodded a little and hung up. "Hatori says to stand by the street, he was searching near here anyway."

Hatsuharu nodded, carrying Rachel over to the street and waiting for the black car to pull up. "Why do you think I didn't transform?"

Momiji shrugged, "Maybe putting people over your shoulder doesn't trigger the curse?"

Hatsuharu agreed, "Yeah. Makes sense." He looked over at Momiji. "Should we see if we transform?"

Momiji jumped up and down, "Yeah! Let's! I wanna hug her! Pass her here! Pass her here!" Momiji opened his arms wide, preparing to receive the girl in his arms. Hatsuharu plonked her onto Momiji, causing him nearly to fall over at the extra weight. But no transformation.

"Interesting." Hatsuharu commented.

A car pulled up in front of the two boys, the driver winding down his window. Hatori looked at him with relief and got out of the car, taking Rachel off of Momiji. "Thank you very much, you two. You have no idea how grateful everyone will be to know you found her. I'll take her back to my office."

"Wait, Hatori!" Momiji spoke up, "Can we come! I want to make sure Rachel's okay!" Hatori nodded, and the two boys entered the car, speeding off towards the main estate.

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When Rachel awoke, she found herself covered in blankets and something strange attached to her arm. Sitting up, she dizzily observed the room around her. All white, strange beeping and a chair beside the bed. There were large machines and a drip beside her bed. She scratched her head, finding it wrapped in bandages, and looked down at a white dress she remembered she had in her closet at Shigure's house. She just barely recalled hitting her head when she passed out after hiding from Yuki. "Yuki…!" She said slowly in a slur, she gasped and started looking around the empty room. _'Does he know I'm here, what about Akito? I don't have any records, how will the hospital know who I am?'_

She watched as Hatori entered the room, "Hatori…" Outside she recognised his office; this must be a special room that he kept for Akito when he was extremely ill.

Hatori looked up from his clipboard and frowned, "What do you think you were doing?" He shut the clipboard forcefully. "Do you know how much you worried everyone? Especially Akito." He walked over and adjusted the machine next to her, he sighed deeply. "You've been in a coma for three weeks. How are you feeling?"

Rachel blinked slowly, only realising just then she was lying back down. "I'm… Okay… I guess…" She said, finding it difficult to get her words out. "What's wrong with… Me?"

Hatori stopped fiddling with the machine and looked over at her, "This is normal for someone waking from a coma. You've been showing movement for a while now, but I assume you don't remember any of it." He smiled kindly, "You're recovering nicely."

Rachel nodded, "Oh…" She mumbled, "How's the others…? They know I… wake?" She felt herself nearly fall asleep.

Hatori tapped his pen on the clipboard, "No, I haven't informed them. If I had told them, they would surely all come and fight to visit you." He slipped the pen into the front pocket of his coat. He took out the drip from her arm, replacing it with a cotton ball. "I would just like to say, after Yuki reported you missing, he said you felt as if you did not belong here." Hatori cleared his throat, "I was not trained to be a therapist, nor do I know how to deal with emotional matters very well. However, I believe that you have already found a reason to belong here. I hope you see that soon." He headed to the door, "I'll leave you to rest, and I'll inform Momiji and Hatsuharu of your wake, they were the ones who found you." He closed the door gently and left her to her thoughts.

Rachel sat back in her bed, "Belong here…?" She mumbled, her mind moving slowly to process her thoughts. It wasn't long before her door burst open again, Momiji and Hatsuharu standing there, staring at her with wide eyes.

"Rachel!" Momiji cried, running over to her and hugging her tightly. "You're awake! I'm so happy!"

Rachel sat in his arms in shock, _'He's not transforming! Argh, now I'll have to explain to them why he's not transforming.'_

Hatsuharu looked towards her and nodded, "Good to see you're well. We heard Hatori talking about you, Rachel. Apparently you turned Akito human." He smirked, "How did you do that?"

Rachel looked at him, holding the boy on top of her carefully. "Nothing… Um, about Momiji not transforming…" She groaned as Momiji bumped his head with hers.

"Momiji." Hatsuharu scolding, taking the boy off Rachel. "She's still recovering. And don't worry about explaining, Ha'ri already done that."

Rachel's eyes widened, _'And they believed it? Well I guess coming from a cursed family it isn't so strange…'_

Hatsuharu pointed at the flowers besides Rachel's bed. "They are from us, I hope you like them." He nodded and began dragging Momiji out of the room. "We'll visit again, but there are others who want to see you more than us, so we'll go."

"What! No! Haru! I want to see her! I want to talk to her!" Momiji cried as he tried to fight his way out of Hatsuharu's grip.

Rachel watched as they left the room, they seemed to come and go in a blink of an eye. She sighed and leaned back into the bed, preparing for sleep. Only to find herself disturbed by a sleepless Yuki, slamming open the door to the room.

"Rachel…" He breathed, he laughed lightly as his worry disappeared into thin air. "You're finally awake." A small smile graced his lips, and he made his way to the chair that sat beside her bed. "How are you feeling?"

Rachel stared at him for a moment, taking in his unkempt appearance. "Um… Better I think. I can think a little clearer." She placed a hand on her head, "I feel like I woke from a long dream. I almost believed I was going to wake up in my bed at home, but I woke here." She smiled at Yuki, "But it's good to see you Yuki, you look horrible. Not worrying about me, are you?"

"Of course I worried," He spoke seriously, "You go missing for a few days, and when you turn up, you're unconscious with a high fever and don't wake up until now." His eyes softened, "I thought you might never wake up."

Rachel laughed, "Of course I would, Yuki!" She waved off his seriousness, "Enough with this dramatic stuff, please?" She smiled sweetly, "We need some fun, come on." She hopped out of the bed, taking off the heart monitor from her thumb.

Yuki placed his hands on her shoulders, "Rachel! What are you doing? You should rest, you're still not recovered."

Rachel shook off his hands, "I've been resting for three weeks apparently, let me have some fun!" She headed towards the door, "If you don't come, I'm leaving without you. Guess you'll have to start worrying about me all over again." She grinned at him, despite the fact he didn't move from his spot. Her face saddened in disappointment, "Please Yuki, I miss the silly things we done." She held out her hand, "Please?"

Yuki sighed, giving into her requests. He held her hand gently; causing her face to glow and a smile brighten her face. "Okay, but as soon as you begin to feel-Whoa!" Rachel dragged him off, out of Hatori's office and into the hall.

"Come on slow poke! You'll get left behind!" She smiled and dragged him through the house. Weaving and sliding past people and corners. They finally broke out the house and into the courtyard out front of the great Sohma house. Rachel stopped for a moment, pondering where to go to.

"Rachel, slow down, you'll hurt yourself." Yuki scolded, frowning at her bare feet which touched the rough surface of the ground. "You should be wearing shoes."

Rachel only grinned, letting go of his hand and running off. "I told you, you'll get left behind! Now you have to try and catch me!" She laughed freely as she took off around the estate, out of Yuki's view.

Yuki stood there, bewildered. "Is that bump on her head really that bad?" He questioned to himself, allowing himself a small smile as he ran after her. Unknowingly passing the building Akito's head was out of, watching the two as they commence their long game of hide and seek. Slowly he left the window, leaving the curtain to blow with the wind.

Rachel poked around the corner of a house, seeing Yuki sitting there silently, his head lolling to one side and soft breaths coming out of his mouth. She smiled happily and shook him lightly, "Yuki? You should wake up now, it's getting dark." She giggled as Yuki made a small snort when he woke up. "Sorry for taking so long to find you, thank you. For playing with me today."

Yuki rubbed his eyes, "It's okay Rachel, it was a pleasure spending the day with you." He smiled warmly at her, "We should do it again."

Rachel nodded, "Yeah!" She looked away and towards the Main house, "I should head back, Akito is probably waiting…" She turned back to him, her smile widening before she nodded again and ran off to the house. "Be safe!" She called as she entered the building.

Rachel ran through the halls happily, dusting off the dirt from her dress as she rounded the corner to Akito's room. She gave herself a once over before knocking on the door lightly.

"Come in."

Rachel smiled brightly as she entered the room, ignoring the tense atmosphere Akito was emitting. "Akito, how hav-"

"It's Master Akito." Akito replied coldly, gazing out to his garden and refusing to meet her eyes.

Rachel looked at him with a confused face, "But, Akito, no one else is-"

"I said it's Master Akito!" Akito raised his voice, standing up abruptly and glaring at her, a fire in his eyes. "Why did you not report to me as soon as you woke up?" He growled, moving towards her and roughly grabbing her arm, "Why did you run off in the first place?" He shouted, digging his nails into her arm more.

"Akito…" Rachel whimpered, almost feeling blood seep through her arm, "Please, it hurts…"

Akito shoved her on the ground, "You are not in the place to speak! Do not speak! Do not say a word!" He shouted manically, "You are to stay in my room, silent and still, for the rest of the day!" When she opened her mouth to speak, he only cut her off. "Shut up! Shut up! You don't know anything! Shut up!" He screeched, almost to himself. "This will teach you… This will teach you! Teach you that you belong to me! You're my slave!" He clenched his fists, "You belong to ME!"

Rachel looked up at Akito, her eyes sad. Standing up, she walked over to him, ignoring his wide eyes. "I'm sorry Akito…" She hugged him lightly feeling him stiffen under her hug, "I will try not to worry you again. I wanted to see you last. Because I wanted to spend the most time with you." She felt him relax in her arms, "It's okay… You don't have to worry anymore." She let go and smiled at him.

Akito's eyes softened, a somewhat sad appearance filled his face. He grabbed her and pulled her into another hug, gripping her closely. "I was so worried." He said roughly, almost to himself, "Don't ever do that again." He felt Rachel nod in his arms, which only caused him to hold her tighter. "Rachel, stay with me tonight. Don't go back to Shigure's, or your room. That's an order. I promise…" Akito whispered, "I won't force you into anything anymore…"

Rachel smiled in his kimono. _'He's actually, considering my feelings… That's so…'_ She stepped out of the hug and looked at Akito affectionately, _'… Sweet…'_ Rachel opened her mouth, not speaking a word as she glanced over his face. "Akito…" She smiled, to herself and to him, _'I know what to do now… Yuki does care for me, I know he does, but I also know that he's capable of loving others. He has the chance to recover and fall in love again. Akito… I can feel that if I left him… He would be crushed forever, and that he would die that way. And besides, I don't think Yuki has ever made me feel more loved, more at home, more safe, than Akito has. Even when he threatens me, even when he takes advantage of me, even when he yells at me, I can't help but know it's all because he cares. With Yuki, I think I was still hung up about him, because… I think he was my favourite character. But I've learned to love Akito, the real one, and not the one… I knew in the anime… I know what to do…' _She giggled out loud, causing Akito to look at her strangely. "Akito… I love you." She smiled up at his shocked expression, "You, and only you. So…" She lifted herself onto the tips of her toes, "You don't have to force me anymore. Because I am more…" Her face edged closer to his, "More than willing."

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Violet glassy eyes watched over them, filled with disappointment, they closed with understanding.

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**End of Chapter 10**

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**A/N: I don't want you to start thinking this is the end. There is a short chapter after this which brings more fluff into it. And a possible sequel called "Stages" which shows the progression of Akito and Rachel's relationship. It might not happen, I was stressed to finish this one. I never usually finish stories, just start them and get around the middle before I get bored. Lucky for you readers before I posted the story it was already made, so no one could effect it.**

**I never saw Yuki as the type to argue or fight over the choice she made. I saw him as the type to keep it silent and slowly move on. But I never saw Akito the type to be able to move on from her. But originally, in the story she was going to end up with Yuki, and when Akito entered the story he was simply made to bea problem the two would work over. But as I kept writing and writing I saw a opening for a different relationship that I don't think I had seen in FanFictions, and I wanted to explore it to have a little bit of originality. I don't recall reading about a girl who was mistaken for a boy alot of the time; who was obsessed with fun.**

**There were many Alternate endings for this story, besides this ending now, the other major ending was a sad one in which she would eventually die. Because the curse doesn't affect others, it would eventually build up in her body to the point that hugging etc. would cause her to collapse like Akito on his worst days. It is too late when everyone picks up on what's happening, and she is on her death bed when Yuki and Akito were to have a big fight over her well being; Yuki accusing Akito of killing her while Akito blaming everything on him for letting her get involved. I might write up this ending, it would most likely start off at the beginning where they find Rachel - And continue normally for a few chapters, her illness showing through the more each time, and then she would collapse at one point, until she dies on the last chapter. (And maybe wakes up at home in hospital - Turns out she was in a coma for a year due to electrical shock from the computer in the very beginning?) Cliche ending, maybe, but realistic. **

**I like this ending though, its nice and sweet. I still prefer drama however.**

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Character Profile of Rachel:

**Name: Rachel Bayley**

**Age: 15-16**

**Gender: Female (I hope no one thinks she's a boy anymore, if they ever did.)**

**Personality: Rather unfeminine, she is mistaken for a boy alot and sort of given up on showing people she is a girl. Childish naturally, she will be cheeky when she can however if the situation gets serious she will become reserved and polite. She is logical usually, dispite her childish nature she is very tuned in to people's emotions however there are times when she will break down due to stress. (She bottles things up basically.)**

**Appearance: Short strawberry blonde hair and milk green eyes (Like blind people would have.) Shorter than Tohru but a little taller than Momiji, completely flat chested, she wears a training bra (in hopes she might be more feminine) but it doesn't help. She feels more comfortable in men's clothing, because she isn't picked on for not being girly in girls clothing.**

**Pairings: For Yuki, her infatuation with him began because she favoured him in the anime series, falling for the princely character he was. Eventually, getting to know Akito, a more dark sinister prince, she began to fall in love with him for who he was. In the (possible) sequel, there would be times where they sat and talked time and time again about life, and because Akito is feeling better, he would treat her kinder because his body was healing.**

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Reviews are appreciated. :)


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

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Hatori lowered the stethoscope from Akito's back, "Well, I have some news Akito." He saw Akito's head turn to the side, his eyes peering through his bangs. "You're nearly recovered. It would seem that something, or someone-" He gazed over to Rachel, who sat on the balcony unknowingly, "- Has helped you heal over the months. Let's hope it stays this way." He watched Akito nod, and almost looked again when he thought he saw a glimpse of a small smile. Hatori stood up from the ground, and begun writing some notes down in his clipboard while he walked to Rachel. "Rachel."

"Hatori." Rachel said, a small smile, "Is Akito going okay? He seems healthier today."

"He's almost recovered." Hatori smiled gently down at her, "You truly are, a cure for the family who could never be cured. Even if you weren't supposed to exist, I think you have found your reason to belong here, yes?" He patted her head, "Because of you, it would seem that Akito has been softer to others, even to the point that he has allowed the relationship between Hiro and Kisa. You don't know them, but if you knew their story, you would understand." He paused for a moment, "Or did you already know their story?" He said, walking out of the room with a smile.

Rachel waited until the click of the door before she leaped from her spot and jumped onto Akito, closing him in a hug and knocking him to the ground. "Akito! It's such great news! I'm so happy!" She placed a messy kiss on his cheek. She giggled at Akito's wide eyes and open mouth. He obviously wasn't expecting her to do that.

Akito coughed into his hand, "Well, of course. I have to live in order to be with you." He lifted up a hand and brushed her cheeks, "Your hair is very long now…" Akito commented, brushing the strands of hair away from her face, and away from tickling his nose. "No one will dare mistake my slave for a boy again, will they?"

Rachel shook her head, the hair tickling Akito's nose again, causing him to sneeze. Rachel giggled at him again, and leaned down to give him a small kiss on his lips. "I love you Akito." She earned a sly smile from Akito. "What is it?"

Akito chuckled, "To think, the reason that I came to know you was to get hurt Yuki and Kyo, but now…" His smile grew, "I'm managed to fall in love with the person I tried to stop them falling in love with."

Rachel stared at him, "Wait… The reason you brought me here in the first place was to hurt Yuki and Kyo?" Rachel slapped his arm, "Bad Akito! I thought you wanted to get to know me!" She cried, hitting him again.

Akito grabbed her arm, "I'll have to punish you for that…" He flipped her over, instead of her being on top of him; he now lay on top of her. "Which punishment should I choose…?" His lips hovered over her neck.

Rachel squirmed, "Akito!" She tried to push him away, but Hatori was right, he was nearly recovered. Not to mention very strong. It was as if all his strength he would have had over the years had come back. He was immovable. "Please, last time people laughed at me and pointed when they saw the mark. Not again! I'll be good! I'll be good!" She suppressed a squeal when she felt the sting of the love bite forming on her neck.

Chuckling, Akito let go of her neck, and placed a small kiss on it before looking at her with a smirk on his face. "I think that is an appropriate punishment for you."

Rachel looked away, annoyed, "More like the only punishment…" She mumbled.

"Until you're 16." Akito smirked, causing Rachel to blush and squirm roughly in his arms. Akito's face fell, "Which… You never told me your birthday." Rachel only responded with even more struggling. "Rachel… Tell me. That's an order." Akito found himself annoyed at the fact she never told him.

Rachel stopped struggling, "It… Was actually… A while ago, before the New Year's Banquet. I never told anyone." She squeezed her eyes tight, "I didn't want to tell anyone." She corrected, "Because I didn't want anyone to spend anything on me, I don't like it." She huffed. _'My name, my birth date, and the truth about this world, that's all I remember. But…' _She looked up to Akito,_ 'It's worth it.'_

"So…" Akito began, processing this new piece of information, "You're 16?" Rachel nodded, "And you're legal?" Rachel nodded once again, "Which means that time when Hatori interrupted us, you could have told him you were 16 already?" Rachel reluctantly nodded again, which made Akito growl and lower his lips to her neck again, "Another punishment, the one I've been holding out for. No arguments."

Rachel squirmed more, "Akito!"

"No struggling either." Akito's smirk returned to his face, "You're stuck with me one way or another anyway."

Rachel stopped struggling and looked Akito in the eyes, she smiled lightly, "You're right. I won't struggle anymore." She closed her eyes, waiting for him. After a while she peeked one eye open, to see him staring at her thoughtfully. "Well… Aren't you going to do anything?"

Akito lifted himself off of her, "It's no fun if you aren't struggling." He scratched his arm as he looked outside with a bored expression on his face.

Rachel flung herself to a sitting position, "What?"

_They were right, about me being a living cure for the family who could not be cured. Of course I couldn't completely cure their curse. After all, that was Tohru's destiny, not mine. Mine turned out to be here, with Akito, and showing him love no one else dared to give. So in a way, I cured him of his curse._

_**~FIN~**_


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